Complicated Emotions
by kurisu313
Summary: NaLu and GaLe story. Upon the discovery of an ancient dragon temple, Natsu and Gajeel are sent to see what's going on. Of course, they'll need a bit of linguistic help in the forms of Lucy and Levy. And who is the stranger waiting for Gajeel?
1. Partners

"Please stop it Lu-chan!" Levy cried. "Stop teasing me!"

"Just admit it, Levy chan. It's not a big secret these days. Everyone knows that you – ahem – lllllllike him."

They were sitting at one of many long tables in the guild hall. It was about a month after the turmoil of the Grand Magic Games and the eclipse gate and the dragons. It had certainly been a bad time all round, but they'd come out the other side okay in the very end.

"Who is 'everyone'?" Levy asked, pouting. She had a book on the table that she was unsuccessfully trying to read as Lucy was bothering her.

Lucy shrugged. "Everyone. According to Cana, you were pretty obvious during his fight with Rogue." Lucy smiled as Levy turned a deeper shade of pink. "And I can't help but notice that Jet and Droy don't bother you as much…like they've moved on or something."

"I…don't know what you're talking about," Levy said, lying poorly. She studiously focussed on the book, hoping that her friend would go away. But Lucy leaned in, wrapping her arms around Levy's narrow shoulders.

"Just say it. You. Like. Gajeel."

Levy turned to glare sidelong at Lucy. "You. Like. Natsu." She was rewarded as Lucy very visibly panicked for a moment, but she was not to be deterred.

"Why won't you just admit it?" Lucy huffed, folding her arms.

"Because he has no interest in me!" Levy shouted, pent up anger escaping in one burst. She quietened, her face becoming sad and flipped a page of her book mindlessly. "Sure, he's saved me a few times and I love him for that, but that's what guild members do for each other, right? I…have nothing to offer him. I'm not strong or sexy."

"That's not true," Lucy argued.

"Then why hasn't he shown any interest in me?" Levy demanded, a little louder than she'd intended.

"Because Gajeel's an emotionally dead moron, you have to spell these things out for him," Lucy guessed.

"I don't buy it. Gajeel's shown interest in plenty of women. He watched you pretty closely in that bunny suit."

Lucy put her finger to her mouth, deep in thought. "So we need to get you a bunny suit…"

"THAT WAS NOT THE SOLUTION TO THAT PROBLEM!" The pair paused, realising that the entire guild was looking at them after that last outburst. Going even redder, Levy buried her head into her book and hoped that everyone would just go away.

"Hey everyone!" Mira shouted as she walked into the guild hall. She was carrying a large stack of magazines and set them down on the bar. "We just got delivery of the new Sorcerer's Weekly – including photos of my fight."

There was a brief pause before every male in the guild rushed up to the bar, vying for position. That fight included a lot of girls in swimwear and bondage gear, after all.

"Man! Man! I didn't get to see in real life!" Elfman shouted, using his prodigious height to reach over the scrum and snatch a copy. People looked at him funny. "Not for my sisters! For Evergre-no one in particular."

"Look at that," Lucy said from their table, watching the scrum. "There'll be pictures of you in there! And…oh for crying out loud!" She looked over into the darkest corner of the guild where Gajeel was munching on iron, clearly disinterested. Damn him, couldn't he just act like a normal male?

"Hey Luce!" Natsu shouted, rushing up with a magazine. "Did you see you in here? You look really-bleh!" Natsu's sentence ended poorly as Lucy shoved him away, snatching the magazine.

"That's sexual harassment!" She shouted, smacking him on the head with it like a bad dog.

"Oh, you two are so going out," Levy noted with some amusement as Natsu scurried away to get another copy.

"He's just a moron," she replied, more than a little red in her cheeks herself now. Lucy spread the magazine out on the table, looking through the photos. It was embarrassing to see herself, but she had to find something to make Levy feel better about herself. She kept flicking. Where were the pictures of Levy? There was a couple of her in the background, but no close-ups.

"I didn't even get a photo?" Levy asked, aghast. Her eyes flickered through all of the photos of all of the girls in their swimsuits, boobs like beachballs. It was like she didn't even exist! Even Wendy appeared here and there, but there was none… No! Here was one of her in a wedding dress…with Gajeel lying on the ground, bored.

"Damn it!" She shouted, rising from her chair. "I'm fed up of today, and it's not even lunch time yet. I'm going to the library to be by myself."

Lucy frowned for a moment and then got up, stomping over to where Gajeel was lounging around. She ignored Lily's pleasant greeting to slap the magazine on the table in front of the slayer.

"Why aren't you ogling these pictures like everyone else?" She demanded. Gajeel looked about as if suspecting a hidden camera. Clearly puzzled, he looked up at Lucy and when he spoke his voice was querying.

"You _want _me to be ogling pictures of the guild girls?"

"No, of course not! I want you to be ogling Levy!" A moment passed and Lucy thought that maybe she was not explaining herself very well. Gajeel was looking at her as if she was some kind of madwoman, and she wasn't doing much to change that opinion, really. "What I mean is; why aren't you interested in Levy?"

Gajeel's stoic demeanour didn't fail, but it did falter, a few expressions briefly flitting over his face before his stonewall expression blocked them out. He got up and walked away around Lucy.

"Nothing to do with you," he muttered as he passed. Lily shook his head and took off after his companion. Lucy was annoyed at first, but the response was promising in retrospect. He hadn't denied anything. No 'I don't like her' or 'Too brainy' or anything like that. As she was watching him go, Makarov suddenly shouted down from the second floor.

"Natsu! Gajeel! Wendy! My office, now!"

"Wendy's not here," Mira called back up. "She went with Porylusica to gather herbs and other apothecary things. She won't be back for three or four days."

"Hmm… just the two morons then! Hurry up!"

"Why us?" Gajeel wondered, his voice low. "To do with slayers?"

"Igneel?" Natsu said breathlessly. The pair raced up the stairs, arguing and pushing past one other constantly. Their exceed partners hurried after them.

**===][===**

"Come on old man, tell us already," Gajeel barked the instant he was through Makarov's door. The old man raised an eyebrow and gestured to a trio of seats. Obviously impatient, the slayers sat down. Lily and Happy shared the third seat, intended for Wendy.

"Now this is probably nothing, but recently there's been an archaeological discovery nearby. They unearthed a set of ruins that have writing that has been identified as Drakonic. I thought that you two would want to know."

Gajeel almost spat in disgust. "It's nothing, then. Just some old ruins."

"Come on Gajeel, aren't you interested? We need every little piece of information if we're going to find our parents!" Natsu urged, becoming quite animated. Gajeel scoffed angrily.

"Pops has never shown any interest in seeing me again!"

"Maybe because of your personality!" Happy piped up cheerily. Lily knocked him off of the seat.

"Take this from a father; things get in the way sometimes, but we try to do things the best we can for our children. Whatever the reason for your parent's abandonment, I believe that they had your best interest at heart. Don't give up on them." Gajeel looked ready to retort, but Makarov's sincerity stopped him. "Well then, I'll phrase this in a different way. The archaeologists have sent us a request for help with exploring and indentifying the ruins. You two are the leading experts on dragons in this guild, so I'm sending you."

"Well, getting paid's different, Gihi!" Gajeel's normal demeanour returned. It may be a waste of time, but easy cash was never a bad thing.

"Oh, before I forget…I was supposed to tell you to take Lucy and Levy with you. Mira says, and I agree, that they're a good fit for this mission because they've both worked closely with the two of you and have good linguistic skills."

"That's not why Mira picked them," Lily noted quietly. He smiled, imagining the matchmaker at work. Gajeel's face had fallen again and even Natsu looked a little queasy.

"Just Lucy…not the rest of my team?" Natsu squeaked in a thin voice. When it came to women, Natsu was fairly oblivious, but recently he'd been thinking of Lucy more and more in those terms. Now that obliviousness made a lack of experience. How would he cope outside of a group mechanic?

"With the Shrimp?" Goddammit! Why couldn't everyone just leave well enough alone? He was still trying to figure all this girly shit out himself! Gah!

There was a moment of silence as the most horrifying aspect dawned on them.

"I'm working with you!?" Gajeel and Natsu shouted at the same instant, slamming foreheads together. This was going to be a nightmare.

**===][===**

"What do I do?" Gajeel shouted in his apartment. It was late at night now, and he was packing a few essentials into a tote bag. Rather roughly, as he was clearly wound up, leading to that outburst. Lily snickered, causing Gajeel to throw some iron detritus at him.

"Something to do with a certain blue-haired bookworm?" The exceed teased.

"I'm not interested in Shorty!" Gajeel shouted.

"Clearly."

"How could I be interested in her? She's so fucking short! And talk about weak! She's gotta be the weakest guild member these days! And she's too wordy! Such a know-it-all! I'm used to dumb, big-boobed girls, all tall and blonde. And…and…"

"And?"

"And she's fucking perfect!" Gajeel wailed rubbing his hands frantically over his skull in the gesture of a madman. "She's so cute and beautiful, kind and brave, and it's always nice to be around her…oh crap, Lily! What do I do?"

"What's the problem? Just tell her," Lily counselled. Gajeel sighed despondently and sat cross-legged on the ground.

"She's not for me, is she?" He asked in unusually sad tones for the slayer. "She's all delicate and stuff; I'm the bastard who hurt her."

"That was a long time age."

"Fuck off, Lily. It ain't that simple. Tell me this; what do we have in common?"

"Uh…," Lily stalled, completely wrong-footed by the question.

"Exactly," Gajeel moped. "Nothing. If we were together, I'd just end up hurting her again."

**===][===**

Levy likewise, was having similar problems at that same moment. Unlike Gajeel who always travelled light, Levy was over-packing, bringing every literary resource she could think of for the translations when they got there. Who knew what dragon script was like? Did she even have a chance of deciphering it?

She kept noticing things that made her worry about herself. Absurdly, her bed was one of them. Due to a combination of being small and needing storage space, Levy used a child-size bed to save on room. It just kept reminding her of how small she was. How weak.

"Gah! Gajeel could never see anything in me!" Levy shouted, kicking her bedpost. She tried to ignore the throbbing pain in her toe and went to stand before her full-length mirror, eyes watering. Not leggy, nor busty. That's what men wanted, right? And Gajeel was the manliest of men…like an Adonis when his shirt came off…she shook herself from her reverie.

They were like polar opposites in so many ways, so why was she so drawn to him? She saw past that fearsome exterior to the kind man underneath, the one who cared for and protected his guildmates with his life. Like a certain blunette. He'd been grievously injured on Tenrou to protect her.

"He got hurt because you were too weak to fight that damn chicken!" She shouted to no one. "He could beat both mages at once, but you couldn't even touch one!"

She curled up on her bead, arms wrapped around her knees. She was thoroughly miserable. This was a rotten situation. She knew that she lo…lo…say it…_loved him_…but honestly thought that she wasn't good enough for him. He was immensely powerful. She remembered how frightened she had been by the iron-shadow transformation, but it had also been thrilling to see such strength. She was like glass in comparison, fragile and brittle.

"We're like night and day," she moped. "I should just give up. I'm just gonna hurt myself."

**===][===**

Unlike Gajeel, Natsu did not have a trustworthy confidant in his exceed. He had less chance to vent. Damn it, but he didn't understand these feelings at all! Ever since he'd lost Lisanna all of those years ago as a little child, he'd pretty much just turned off the part of himself that saw women as….well, women.

Luce was Luce, right? She was his best friend of several years. He stopped. He'd only known Lucy for about two years. He'd known most of his guildmates for his entire life. He hadn't noticed how quickly Lucy had gone from complete stranger to the closest person in his life.

"Natsu, you look like you're thinking too much," Happy declared. "You should just be a moron like always!"

"Hey, Happy? You like Charla, right?" Natsu asked.

"Charla's wonderful!" Happy agreed.

"Right, you get it! Women are there to be loved, right? That's normal, right?"

"You're saying 'right' a lot," Happy said. "Seems like you just want permission to be a pervert."

"I'M NOT TRYING TO PERV ON LUCY!"

"Ah, Lucy," Happy replied, nodding sagely. Natsu belatedly realised what he'd just let slip. "From what I understand of your human mating rituals, that makes complete sense. She has the most important quality in a girlfriend."

"Really?" Natsu asked, honestly intrigued.

"Big boobies!"

Natsu fell over onto the ground at the statement. "That's what I get for trying to have a serious conversation with Happy."

**===][===**

Lucy was trying to put the rest of the current chapter of her book to pen quickly. She knew that the next few days were going to be stressful in terms of personalities, and having a fresh chapter on hand would perk Levy up immensely.

She chewed the end of the pen and looked out of the window at the starry night sky, lost in thought.

"One way or another, this trip should be quite interesting."

**===][===**

The ruins were huge. The part that had been excavated was but the tip of the iceberg compared to what remained underground. Atop a nearby mountain ridge, a man watched the ruins idly. He was an enormous man, around the same height as Elfman, and similarly broad. His black hair and beard were long and unkempt from years of living in the wilderness, running together into one mess of hair.

In the dark night, ruby irises glowed.

"Dragon treasure…this should draw you out…Gajeel Redfox."

**Hi there! This is my first time trying to write Natsu or Lucy in any real depth, so I'd appreciate and criticism on how I can improve on them. While this story is intended to be Nalu and Gale, it'll probably be much heavier on the Gale, as is my usual idiom.**


	2. Night at the Inn

Lucy was fairly sure that this was an interesting situation, but it was also difficult. The group of four mages and two exceeds had met up at the guild the following day. There had been a brief discussion on how they were going to get to the quest's location. Natsu and Gajeel refused to use the train, both hating the idea of showing weakness in front of the other.

Now they were walking, a trip that would take about two days by foot, much to Lucy's distress. But the group mechanic was interesting to watch. Natsu and Gajeel pressed a fast pace, refusing to slow down. Gajeel was seemingly more of a jackass than normal. He was clearly wound tight, probably due to Natsu and Levy's presence here.

Poor Levy trailed at the back with her much shorter stride and heavy backpack full of books. Lucy was sure that Gajeel was going to offer to carry it, but instead the pair had argued about nothing. Lucy, a shrewd character study, was sure that both of them wanted Gajeel to take the load, but neither would admit it. To admit that he cared. To admit that she was weak.

Mentally, Lucy was drawing a box with the four corners as themselves. Between Gajeel and Natsu you had fierce rivalry and competition, but some brotherhood and commonality. Between Natsu and Lucy you had great friends with the awkward undertone both were starting to feel. Between Lucy and Levy you had best friends, but ones that currently didn't want to talk, particularly about boys. And then you had Gajeel and Levy, completing the box with their weird tsundere relationship. Lucy hoped they'd both wise up sooner or later.

But…Lucy wondered about the corners. Her and Gajeel. They never really talked much. Well, Gajeel rarely talked to anyone. Perhaps that was unfair; he wasn't exactly a loner, but he wasn't a conversationalist. And how did Natsu feel about Levy? Lucy had never really thought about it; they never interacted much either.

And overhead, the exceeds floated around on their wings, both clearly amused by the situation. Well, Happy was always amused, but Lily seemed to be enjoying himself too. Now, what insider information did that black exceed have?

"Oi!" Natsu shouted back down the road. "The path goes up here; we'll be taking a rest in a mountain village tonight."

"Up!" Levy moaned feebly. Her limbs were shaking!

"That's right, Shortstuff!" Gajeel shouted crassly, hearing her comment with his slayer senses. "You should feel happy that you're going up for a change! Gihihi!"

"I'm not short!" Levy shouted back reflexively. Gajeel merely laughed and headed back up the road. Lucy watched as Levy went bright crimson and flailed her arms around in a petulant manner.

"It's alright Levy-chan," she soothed. "You know he teases you because he likes you, right?"

Levy didn't respond, turning an even deeper shade of red. Lucy cocked her head fondly. She always considered Levy a very 'in-control' sort of person. Always in her element, doing the things that she was good at. Lucy suspected that one draw of Gajeel was that he was an uncontrollable element, something that stuck under her skin and refused to get in line nicely.

In fact, now that Lucy thought about it, she wasn't used to seeing Levy like this. She looked so vulnerable that it made Lucy protective. That damn asshole better figure this out quickly, or she was going to have to get involved!

**===][===**

They reached the mountain village, a tiny place consisting of no more than two dozen buildings. It didn't take too long to find the only restaurant in the place, Gajeel and Natsu leading the way with their noses and rumbling stomachs.

They sat around the table, a plethora of dishes in the centre. It was a bit one-sided, as the dragon-slayers began to eat with a passion, fighting over any dish that was about halfway in between two. At the third time that Levy had something snatched away from her, she'd had enough.

"I was going to eat that!" She shouted at Gajeel. He smirked and quickly gobbled down the food. "You asshole! Why can't you act more like a gentleman?"

"You're too slow eating! Maybe if you're stomach wasn't so little, you could eat faster!"

"A gentlemen would allow a lady to eat!"

"I ain't no gentlemen and you ain't no lady!"

"So Natsu, how was your day?" Lucy asked feebly, trying to break the argument. Natsu looked at her as if she were insane. After all, they'd spent the day walking together. And he was enjoying the argument. Maybe there'd be a fight! He needed little excuse to wail on Gajeel!

"What do you mean, I'm not a lady?" Levy huffed.

"Well, ladies are…" At that moment, Lily threw himself at Gajeel's head, bowling him over. He'd seen the thick-headed dolt's train of thought and didn't like it. The moron would probably think that it was just teasing, but there was a limit! On the floor, separated briefly from the others, he whispered into Gajeel's ear.

"Don't insult her!"

"Get off me, damn cat!" Gajeel shouted, throwing his partner back up and over the table, colliding with Natsu's head. A few minutes later, the party of Fairy Tail mages were outside the restaurant, forking over jewels for the damage bill the ensuing fight had caused. Still, Lily mused, he'd managed to avert relationship suicide from Gajeel.

"You three!" Lucy shouted. "We need to be able to stay in an inn tonight! I swear that if you get us kicked out and we have to spend a night in the cold mountains sleeping outside that I will knee you repeatedly in the balls!"

"Yes! Lucy!" Natsu affirmed quickly. Gajeel made a dismissive noise and turned his head to the side. To Levy's absolute amazement, Lucy marched over to him and planted her knee exactly where she promised that she would. Gajeel went down like a lump of iron.

"Do. You. Understand?" Lucy asked. This time Gajeel confirmed that he did in a voice several octaves higher than normal while rolling on the ground in pain. Levy felt a little weird. She didn't agree with Lucy's action exactly, but she felt ashamed that Lucy had successfully dealt with Gajeel in mere moments. She couldn't have done that.

"That's because she spends too much time with Erza!" Happy declared cheerily.

"I…I'll bear that in mind," Gajeel gasped.

**===][===**

They reached the inn as night was falling. As it turned out, there were two rooms available, both doubles. Despite some argument, the girls got one and the boys got the other. Lucy reminded them of the imminent kneeing that any fights would cause.

In their room, Gajeel and Natsu were glaring at each other wordlessly. The double bed was like the most powerful of enemies, an insurmountable obstacle. Happy and Lily watched on with some amusement.

"No one's takin' their clothes off," Gajeel stated.

"Agreed, I get enough of that from Gray," Natsu deadpanned.

"There is a bathroom," Lily said. "You can change in there, you know."

"NO!" Gajeel and Natsu snapped at the same time. A painful silence dragged on for a while. At last, Gajeel sighed and his shoulders sagged.

"So…you and Lucy banging each other yet or what?" He asked crassly. The look on Natsu's face as he blustered away was priceless.

"Nope!" Happy chimed in. "Natsu has no idea what body part goes in which hole!"

"Gihi! It ain't hard, Salamander! You just hang on and give it to 'em at full force!"

"What would you know?" Natsu shouted, clearly unsettled by the way this discussion was going. Gajeel leaned in, a shit-eating grin all over his face.

"Some of us have actually done it with a chick before…_virgin._"

"You asshole…you're older than me! I'm only eighteen!"

"Ah? I was sixteen when I first did it!" Gajeel was bragging now, all confident and superior.

"Really?" Natsu looked curious now and Gajeel's demeanour changed suddenly, becoming more doleful.

"I ain't proud of it, but I was the top dog of Phantom Lord. I had women lining themselves up just to get a taste. Women love power and danger, after all." He shrugged. "It was stupid, meaningless stuff, and nowadays I wish I'd saved myself, but at least I know how it's done."

"Is…is it good?" Natsu asked, gulping with trepidation. Of all the humans on the planet he didn't want to have this conversation with, Gajeel might only be topped by Erza.

"Better than the one-handed waltz," Gajeel confirmed. "I'm not in the business of being nice, but don't panic so much. Sex is dead simple." He grinned lewdly and thrust his hips. "Do that about a hundred times and you're done! No, the tricky part is the woman. It'll be about getting Lucy to the bedroom in the first place."

"Who said anything about banging Lucy!?" Natsu shouted. Gajeel pounced, covering the other slayer's mouth. The pair waited and listened as Natsu saw his mistake. But thankfully, the girls didn't have slayer hearing and hadn't heard the outburst.

"You're too obvious," Gajeel said with a triumphant smirk. "You and Lucy are always together."

Natsu looked away, and to Gajeel's surprise he appeared to be thinking. "I can't remember the last time that I saw you and Levy wasn't within a few metres."

"It's a small guild!" Gajeel replied shakily and defensively. "Of course she'd be somewhere nearby. So was Cana and Elfman, I bet!"

"Just admit it; you like her!" Natsu teased, glad to have the offence again. Gajeel hemmed and hawed, not really saying anything, but Lily stepped in.

"Yep. He likes her, but he's too much of a big girl's blouse to admit it."

"Shaddup, damn cat! I don't fancy Shorty!"

"Okay," Natsu said with a fierce grin, "if I called her Shrimp, you wouldn't mind?"

"N-no," Gajeel lied.

"_Shrimp_," Natsu said with relish. Gajeel was shaking violently with pent up rage. No one else should call her that! It was his name for her, damn it! Natsu grinned further, clearly up for the torture. "So, what do you like about _Shrimp_?"

"I said that I didn't like her," Gajeel hissed.

"Do you like her eyes?" Natsu teased. "Tell me what you think of them!"

"I, uh, they're fine. They're good at reading."

"That's the best thing you could think of to lie?" Natsu mocked. "How pathetic!"

"He meant to say that they're pools of chocolate that draw him in to love her deeply!" Happy sang, circling Natsu's head. Gajeel's teeth ground together and he decided that the best idea was to retake the offensive.

"What about Lucy's hair? What do you think of that?" He demanded. Natsu went red in turn. At last, Natsu and Gajeel came to an agreement. In order to work out their frustrations, they'd have to arm wrestle. Hopefully, that wouldn't destroy the inn.

**===][===**

"This is so fun!" Lucy squealed. "Just like a sleepover!"

The pair had changed into their sleep wear, both wearing a t-shirt and shorts. Lucy's shirt was white while Levy's was pale yellow. The pair was dwarfed by the double bed with its voluminous sheets.

"I think the law of media says that we should have a pillow fight and then practise making out!" Levy joked, sticking out her tongue.

"Oh? And just who are we practicing for?" Lucy asked with a wolfish grin.

"Don't joke about that," Levy replied with restrained annoyance.

"Think positive, Levy!" Lucy chirped. "If you want to get Gajeel as your man, think about your strong points!" Lucy easily followed Levy's thought process as the smaller girl looked down, then at Lucy's chest. "Think harder, Levy-chan! What does Gajeel like?"

"Um…big boobs?" Levy guessed.

"You really are dense about this particular subject, aren't you?" Lucy chastised. "Gajeel likes cute."

"What?"

"Cute. Cuteness. Cute things. It's the darkest secret of the big, bad iron dragon. Haven't you noticed?"

"No…"

"Who are Gajeel's three favourite people in the guild?" Lucy asked.

"Well, Lily."

"Who is cute."

"Umm….Wendy, but because she's a slayer."

"Nope. Natsu's a slayer, and so is Laxus. He likes Wendy because she's cute."

"Hah! But Juvia is next, and she's not cute…well, not like that."

"You silly little girl. Juvia's not in his top three – you are!" Lucy grinned as Levy went red and started making denials. As if everyone in the guild didn't know that those two spent an excessive amount of time together. Or if not together, then always in the general vicinity of the other. "You gotta focus on the fact that Gajeel likes cute, and you are as cute as any human ever can be!"

"I…I…I don't like it!" Levy squealed. "I'm an adult woman, and the best attribute I have is being cute? Not sexy, but cute!"

"You're sexy!" Lucy asserted. "But like a little kitten."

"That's not what sex kitten means!" Levy fumed and threw herself at her friend. The pair giggled as they fought on the bed, but Lucy was far stronger than Levy and pinned her down, lying on her back.

"Stop avoiding these things," she said devilishly. "You act all pure and innocent, but you know better! You told me that Erza liked ecchi novels – well, where was she getting them from?"

"Um…," Levy filled in. She was a poor liar indeed. She flailed around underneath Lucy. "Get off of me!"

"Okay…if you admit that you like Gajeel!"

"What? No fair! And haven't we been talking about this anyway?"

"Yeah, but you've never actually admitted to it. I want to hear you say it."

"I'll never admit it!" Levy cried, trying in vain to dislodge Lucy. "You know that you're not helping my confidence here, forcing me to see that I'm too little to shift you."

"Little means cute, Levy-chan. Cute means that Gajeel likes you. C'mon, that's the thing he always calls you, right? It's because he likes how small you are!" Lucy leaned down, uncomfortably close to Levy's ear. "Go on; admit that you like it when he picks you up!"

Levy made an expression like a fish gasping for air. "I-I will do no such thing! I hate it!"

"You are a terrible liar," Lucy said happily, finally leaning back to let Levy up. She really must be the littlest person in the whole world, Lucy thought fondly.

"Mou! You're mean, Lu-chan!" She looked around at her friend. "You want me to admit to these things, but you won't even acknowledge Natsu as your boyfriend."

"He's not-"

"Psh. You've been together for ages now, you just haven't realised it."

"Bitch, I will pin you to this bed again," Lucy said playfully, making Levy stick out her tongue. Lucy frowned, looking thoughtful. "So neither of us have admitted to anything, right? Not admitted to liking anyone?"

Levy nodded, straight-faced, but then her mouth twitched and broke up into a broad grin. Lucy returned it and they giggled. They weren't fooling anyone, were they? They stopped talking though, and the lights went out. As she lay there, Lucy was wondering if she should have summoned Nicola. Having nothing to cuddle was boring. But at some point, Levy wriggled across to hug Lucy's arm. Lucy smiled lovingly to watch her friend sleep. She didn't think that Levy'd even been awake, she was just a cuddly type of person.

Damn Gajeel! Levy was the sort of person who needed hugs and cuddles…well, so was she in a way…wasn't everyone, really? When would he stop being so goddamn ignorant and just look after Levy? Wasn't one of his better failings being over-protective?

And Natsu…Lucy shook herself, not allowing herself to follow that train of thought. Suddenly, the pair jerked upright as there was some sort of loud bang. They looked at each other, knowing the likely outcome.

There was a knock, and Lily and Happy joined them apologetically, saying that Natsu and Gajeel had just been kicked out. Apparently, Natsu had kicked in his sleep and things had just spiralled from there. Levy and Lucy settled back into their beds, now having an appropriate exceed to cuddle.

Outside, Natsu and Gajeel settled underneath a tree to sleep. They'd agreed to wait until morning to kill one another.


	3. An Apple A Day

Gajeel awoke from his slumber as an apple smacked him in the face. He looked up at the tree he was leaning against blearily, but the damn thing wasn't a fruit tree. He looked down again to see a smiling Lucy holding a bushel of apples.

"What the hell, woman?" He snarled, noticing that Natsu had been similarly awoken.

"Breakfast," she said cheerily. "I gave it to you like that because you two couldn't not fight for just one night. But hey, I got to sleep in a comfy bed, so no knee to the balls!"

"Uh thanks," he conceded, taking up the apple and swallowing the whole thing in two bites. "Where's Shorty?"

"Urgh, close your mouth when you eat and _Levy _is still in bed. Poor thing's arms and legs are hurting, because _someone _didn't carry her bag for her."

"It's her bag," Gajeel objected.

"True."

"Salamander could have carried it!"

"Also true."

"You're still blaming me, right?"

"Yep."

"That's not fair."

"True."

"Damn woman!" Gajeel snapped, getting to his feet. Lucy wasn't quite sure if he was referring to her or Levy, but he stomped off towards their bedroom, so her first job of the morning had succeeded. She looked down as Natsu was pulling apples out of the bushel at a great rate.

"Oi, I just paid for these!"

"Thanks, Lucy!" Natsu beamed through a full mouth. Lucy sighed and rolled her eyes before sitting down next to him to join him in breakfast.

**===][===**

Levy snuggled against her pillow with all of her strength. Her limbs were buzzing from the previous day's exertions and she had no plans to get out of this bed in the near future. She heard the gruff voice order her to get up, but she merely squeezed her eyes tighter shut and increased her grip on the pillow.

Then the entire world span upside down as Gajeel grabbed the blanket and yanked, easily pulling Levy off of the bed and onto the floor. She landed with a startled squeak, trying to ignore the annoying laugh coming from far above her.

"Just like a kitten!" He mocked. Now, she was pissed. Would everyone just stop comparing her to a kitten? She jumped to her feet to berate him, but that just made the height difference painfully obvious.

"Don't call me that!" She huffed.

"Oh? What animal would you like me to compare you to?" He asked with a broad grin. Levy pouted, thinking. Damn it, but early morning was not the best time for her cognitive faculties. She was hardly a lion or a tiger, a bear or wolf, was she?

"A…butterfly," she said at last.

"That's actually weaker than a kitten," Gajeel replied, raising a metal studded brow.

"But it's beautiful and delicate, just like me. Also, it's elegant and ladylike."

"Nah, I think kitten is better," he said, rubbing her hair in a condescending fashion. "It's all cute and feisty, even though it has no claws! Gihihi!"

Levy said about a hundred swear words in her mind that never quite reached her mouth. But then, what had Lu-chan said? Gajeel likes cute? Was this his bizarre way of saying that he liked something about her? Wait! This is what he was going to say at the table last night! That she wasn't elegant and ladylike, but round and cute!

"Why are you here?" she asked after a moment, stifling her anger.

"Lucy said to me – hey, Shorty's being a little short baby, go and wake her short ass up."

"She did not!"

"Well, words to those effect," Gajeel clarified. He folded his arms and looked over at her hefty backpack, making a disgruntled tut. "Jeez Shortstack, if you needed help, why didn't you just ask?"

"It's my burden, I can carry it," Levy said sternly. "I do it all the time when I'm with Shadow Gear."

"Little people shouldn't be so proud. Just ask for help."

"Big idiots shouldn't be so proud. They should just offer to help," Levy retorted. Gajeel scowled at the returned sentiment.

"Don't be all clever, turning my words back on me."

"That only works when you're wrong!" Levy asserted. Gajeel grunted this time, annoyed by her persistence. Damn Shrimp wasn't going to lose a war of words! Even though he loomed over her with his intimidating demeanour, she treated him as an equal in an argument. Didn't treat him like a monster, a sadistic sociopath who inflicted harm upon that tiny…

_Where the hell was he going with this train of thought? _Now he was really pissed, not liking how he was thinking. Damn her for being so cute in her pyjamas, it was distracting! Fine! She'd won this round, but his male pride demanded a vindictive comeback, so he reached over her head to grab the scruff of her t-shirt, effortlessly lifting her off of the ground.

"Fine! I'll offer to carry your damn bag! Should I carry you as well?"

"The bag will be fine! But it's really heavy…"

Gajeel put her down and threw the bag over one shoulder. There was a tonne of books in it, but for the slayer it was nothing. He headed for the door, thinking about if he could get a proper breakfast. Bacon and eggs, none of this pansy fruit.

"Hurry up and change, Shorty. We don't have all day."

"By the way, I'd say that you were a wolf," Levy claimed. He stopped, smiled and nodded before leaving. That sounded about right to him. Wolves were badass. _Yes_, Levy thought, _a wolf. Sometimes violent and aggressive, but possessing a noble spirit and always strongest when with their pack._

"Ah! What am I thinking about!?" She said quietly, hands on blushing cheeks. She hurried to get ready.

**===][===**

"That was not a large breakfast," Gajeel moped as they went down the mountain trail. Levy looked up at him in shock. They'd all gotten a full English breakfast with his being three times the size of hers and he'd still taken half of her breakfast. She'd been saving the egg, damn him! At least she'd gotten some bacon inside her. But the sausages and black pudding all went to him. She liked meat too, you know!

"Really!" Natsu agreed. He'd tried to steal Lucy's, but she'd fended him off successfully, and by the time he'd turned back, Happy had snatched his sausages from the other side. Of course, he'd eaten about ten apples beforehand, but still.

"I wasn't aware mealtimes were supposed to be battlegrounds," Lucy sighed. "Can we at least get through lunch without any fighting?"

"No," Gajeel and Natsu replied at the same moment and laughed. Then they realised who they were sharing a joke with and harrumphed, turning their noses up at each other. They'd left the mountain village after eating, and were following the trails through the foothills down to the supposed discovery. It lay in the shadow of this mountain.

"I wonder what Drakonic is like," Levy said aloud. Bereft of the weight of her books, she was much more conversational. "I wonder what the subject-object-verb order is."

"The what?" Gajeel asked.

"You know, what order the sentences go in. English is subject-verb-object. I ate the apple. Japanese is subject-object-verb. Watashi wa ringo ga tabemasu. Also, English puts the adjective before the noun, but French puts it after. The black cat. Le chat noir. And…"

"Smartass," Gajeel teased with surprisingly good nature. He frowned as if he was thinking. "I think dragons put a lot of emphasis on the person. Who they are, what they do is important to them, so the subject would go first. I think."

"Wah! That's so great!" Levy enthused, not used to seeing Gajeel thinking. "Anything else?"

"Igneel always said that emotions were important," Natsu said from a little further ahead. "Words changed depending on the mood of the writer or the thing they were writing about. He said that my name as written is with great joy, as that's what he felt when he adopted me."

"Natsu," Lucy said quietly.

"Gihi! I remember that! The old man said something about my name being pragmatic. Bastard never felt any kind of joy!" Gajeel's tone was light, as if fondly reminiscing. Levy watched him for a long moment and turned away blushing when he noticed.

"That sounds complicated," she said to cover the moment. "I hope I can understand it."

"Well, if you can't no one can," Gajeel said. Levy blinked. Had that been a compliment? Sure, it'd been phrased in an unusual way, but still! He'd just praised her! It made her feel a lot better; as she'd been a bit nervous about the company she'd been keeping. Natsu and Gajeel were immensely powerful, two of the strongest in the guild. And Lucy wasn't far behind that, in Levy's personal opinion. She was the weakling here, and by a large margin of strength to boot.

But Gajeel believed in her! She felt like she was walking on a cloud!

"Levy's gone all red!" Happy tried to declare, but barely got a word out before Lily tackled him to the ground. Damn it! How many people was he going to have to tackle to get these two in a functioning relationship!?

**===][===**

They came across the ruins and they were amazing. Huge sandstone walls were erected, with gateways large enough for a very big creature to pass through. The ruins themselves receded under the mountain, making only the very entrance visible to them. But they just went up, for over a dozen metres, making the party feel very small.

"This must be how Shorty feels standing next to me! Gihi-ow!"

"It goes beneath the earth," Natsu noted. "Strange."

"Why?" Lucy asked curiously.

"Dragons are flying creatures. Why would they build under the ground?"

"You're over-thinking things, Salamander! Maybe that's the reason this is the only dragon ruin today; this is the unusual one. All the spires and towers were collapsed."

"Maybe," Natsu said in an unconvinced manner.

Before the ruins were canvas tents, the camp of the archaeologists. They rushed up to greet the Fairy Tail mages. At last, one managed to identify himself as the leader of the expedition. Alexander Cromwell was a surprisingly young man for his position, in his thirties at the most. He spoke with a charming accent and the slayers couldn't help but notice how the girls sort of gravitated to the front to listen to him speak.

That could not go unanswered.

Both of the Slayers shared a nod in a rare moment of brotherhood and marched towards the ruins.

"Wait!" Alexander called. "We're still trying to confirm if the ceiling is secure, and we don't know what kind of wild beasts might inhabit the depths of that place!"

"Sorry, but don't worry if the place is unstable," Natsu returned.

"Property damage is our thing, we'll know if it's good," Gajeel agreed.

"Wait up!" Levy cried, running after them. "I wanna see the writing!"

Lucy looked around and sighed. "Why do I feel like I'm being dragged on another dangerous mission against my will?"

**===][===**

In the depths of the temple, a nose twitched.

"They're coming. They'll be here very soon, Garren." Out of the gloom advanced the tall, black haired man, eyes glowing crimson in the dark. He looked down at the man who had addressed him, crouching on the floor like some kind of predator.

"Just remember Erutan, Gajeel is mine."

"Suit yourself, old geezer. Out of my kindred slayers, I'm much more interested in this Salamander." Erutan smiled in a most disturbing manner. "Did you see the magic games? He's so strong!"

"You'll never beat him."

"Maybe not, but I'd like to try. After, that's why you hired us, isn't it? We'll take care of the firebrain and the girls. You'll get your one-on-one battle that you desire."

"Watch out for that black Exceed. He's probably stronger than the girls," Garren advised.

"Gotcha." Erutan began to laugh, his skin forming rocky scales. "Maybe Salamander's fire can scorch iron, but can it handle rock?"

"Iron's harder to burn than rock, moron," Garren scoffed.

"Shut it, old man! I'm too excited to listen to your downers! Bring it on, Fairy Tail! We will crush you!"


	4. Boy Talk

Inside, the ruins were equally impressive. The main entrance led down to a grand atrium, the size of a football stadium. This section was lit by lamps the archaeologists had set up. Beyond that were three gateways that led off into the darkened temple.

"There's so little detail," Levy said, commenting on the décor. The walls appeared to be made out of sandstone, and there were no statues of any kind. The staircase down had been murder for Levy, but had been made with some apparent consideration for humans.

"They're big creatures, dragons," Gajeel replied with a sarcastic inflection. "They don't exactly do fine detail."

"I know that! But then, how can they write?"

"Big letters, sharp nails and magic," He replied laconically. He pointed at the end of the hallway, above the middle of the three gates where runes glowed. "See?"

Levy bounded across the distance so fast that she left everyone else behind, her eyes filled with stars. She was so excited to see the mystical writing that it took her several long moments to realise just how high up it was. She hopped up and down like a bunny as if it would make any difference; the gateway was easily ten metres tall.

"That's not fair!" She shouted. "Why do dragons have to be so tall?"

"This could be a dwarf ruin and you'd still have prob-ow! Hey Lily! What was that for?"

"Don't insult the girl you fancy," the black cat hissed quietly. "It's not rocket science!"

"I don't-," Gajeel started, strangling his sentence lest he be overheard.

"The writing's boring," Natsu moaned, drawing venomous looks from the two girls. "Maybe if we go deeper there'll be something cool, like dragon treasure or cool art or something!"

"Maybe there'll be writing nearer to the ground," Lucy suggested tentatively to Levy.

"But…if the writing's above the gateway, it might be instructions on where to go," Levy protested.

"You can't figure out a whole language from a sign," Lucy said with a little laugh. "We'll have to find something more meaty."

"But…it's dark in there," Levy said with a small shiver. She hated the dark with a passion, ever since she'd had to infiltrate the mansion of an evil witch when she was eleven. Thank goodness that Erza had been there...the young Levy had completely seized up. No matter how many times that she tried to convince herself that adult Levy was over this childhood fear it never quite worked.

"Calm down Shortstack, we're here too," Gajeel said dismissively.

"Yes, but you two are reckless and will get lost," Happy noted. Lily nodded, until Gajeel reached down and picked him up, dropping him in Levy's arms.

"Hey, Gajeel!" Lily cried.

"Look after the Shorty then, I'm going exploring! Gihi!" Gajeel ran off into the middle gate and Natsu and Happy ran after him, eager for adventure. Levy looked up at Lucy, now alone with Lily. Wasn't splitting up the worst possible thing a group could do?

"You look calm, Lu-chan."

"I'm used to this; my teammates aren't as reliable as yours."

"I am not a plush toy!" Lily raged from Levy's arms. "If that bonehead thinks that he can just ditch me, he's got another thing coming!"

"Still, could you stay with us, Lily? Just in case something happens?" Levy asked, bringing her hazel puppy dog eyes to bear. Lily folded his arms and closed his eyes.

"On the other hand, spending time with you two will be much less stressful. Deal!"

**===][===**

Natsu led the way, using flame from his right hand as a torch to light the way. He was growing increasingly bored. Beyond the size of the place, this was as boring as hell. There were no cool statues, no cool paintings and no treasure. It was just plain corridor after plain corridor.

There was writing everywhere, though. The girls would have a field day. But…

"I'm bored!" He shouted.

"I get it, Salamander," Gajeel growled. Both of them were disappointed. This temple could have been some kind of connection to the past, but it was just a building, nothing more. It felt like the dragons had stripped out everything of worth when they left. Gajeel spat on the ground. "Oi Salamander. What do you think about Shortstack?"

"You mean Levy?" Natsu asked with a laugh.

"That's what I bloody said."

"And why are you asking me that?"

"Answer the fucking question!"

Natsu shrugged. "She's nakama."

"Bull-fucking-shit. Reedus is nakama. Do you consider him the same as Lucy?" Gajeel grinned as Natsu's expression deepened, his mouth puckering.

"What do you want me to say? Levy's a good person."

"I mean, I'm the newcomer to this guild. I don't know all of you guy's histories and shit. I'm just asking."

"But why about Levy? Why not Reedus?"

"No one cares about Reedus! Just answer the fucking question, god damn it!" Gajeel shouted. Damn it, why had he started this conversation?

Natsu shrugged again. "Levy's great in most ways. She's just about the kindest and most forgiving person that I've ever met." Natsu wasn't watching, but he felt Gajeel tense a little at that. "She's pretty much the smartest person in the guild. She's not strong, but does that matter? You could take both of us out, and the guild would still function. If we lost Levy and maybe Lucy and Fried, we'd be pretty boned."

"I used to think strength was the only important thing in the world," Gajeel admitted. There was silence only broken by their footsteps down the empty corridor and Gajeel realised that Natsu was waiting for him to continue. "But you remember Fried's barrier? We were two slayers and were helpless. That little midget was the only one who could have broken it."

"You remember when we fought Laxus in the cathedral?" Natsu asked, drawn into remembering. "Laxus was infinitely more powerful than Levy. If he'd chosen to attack her…I hate to think about it. But Levy ran in without hesitation. That's Levy."

"Weaklings shouldn't put themselves in harm's way," Gajeel replied harshly.

"Because that's what we're for?" Natsu asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Right. Strong morons like us are supposed to do all the dangerous stuff," Gajeel declared boldly. "Little people are to be…uh…"

"Looked after? Protected? Hugged?" Happy teased, flying circles above Gajeel's head as the iron dragon tried to swat him away.

"N-no! I was just trying to say-"

"That you don't think that strength is the only important thing anymore?" Natsu guessed, silencing Gajeel. "Otherwise, why protect the weak?"

"Some people are worth protecting."

"You're such a pansy now!" Natsu shouted, barking out a laugh.

"S…SHADDUP SALAMANDER!" Gajeel shouted back. "God, here I was trying to have a pleasant conversation!"

"No, I think it's great that you two like each other!" Natsu said with a ferocious smirk.

"I never said that-"

"Yes, we're just talking about a random guild member," Natsu deadpanned.

"Right! Let's talk about Lucy next! Big tits, right?"

Natsu choked so hard at the sudden course change that Gajeel had wrought that he almost managed to fall over. He stayed upright and staggered on a few steps, trying to gather his wits. Lucy's tits. Damn brain, think of something else! Lucy's smile. Gah! That's not helping!

"It's alright Salamander! I like that type too! I mean, blonde, leggy…b_ouncy_."

"Shut up! Lucy is much more than that!"

"Oh?" Gajeel was grinning. Poor dumbass was playing into his hands and didn't even realise it.

"Lucy's real smart and kind! She solves all the clever stuff on our missions and Lord knows that she's halved my usual damage bill! And the guild's just been much more fun since she joined!" Natsu huffed and turned away.

"So…the boobs are just a bonus?"

"Yes," Natsu replied, blood dripping from his nose.

"Lucy will be happy to know!" Happy sang. Natsu grabbed him and frantically swore him to silence as Gajeel's mocking laughter rang down the hallway.

"**Earth Dragon's Roar!**" A cyclone of dust and rock was hurtling down the corridor in a heartbeat. The two Slayers had been far too preoccupied by their conversation to counter it and it filled the entire corridor – there was no dodging it. Natsu managed to throw himself between the attack and Happy, shielding his exceed.

"Pathetic," Erutan mocked as he appeared in the darkness at the end of the hallway. Gajeel and Natsu were picking themselves up, the corridor now strewn with dust and rock detritus. This person looked a bit like a stockier version of Natsu, with deep brown hair. He had a sandy tunic and trousers and strange blue half-carapace armour.

"A slayer?" Natsu questioned.

"Bastard," Gajeel hissed. "This some kinda trap?"

"That's exactly what it is! **Earth Dragon's Curtain Wall!**" Erutan swept his hands up and behind Natsu and Gajeel a thick wall of rock began to rise, cutting off any chance of escape. Not missing a beat, Natsu hurled Happy through the gap before it closed.

"Find Lucy and the others! Tell them what happened!" He roared.

"Aye sir!" Came the faint reply a moment before the wall completed.

"Moron. You gonna take on both of us at the same time?" Gajeel said with a leer.

"Wait!" Natsu objected. "I wanna fight him by myself!"

"Hey, I wanna fight too!" Gajeel snapped.

"Seriously?" Erutan asked, eyes looking around for the source of the joke. "That easy? I thought I was going to have to separate you two or something. I wanna fight Dragneel! You, Metalhead! I've got an associate who's looking to fight you!"

"What?"

"This whole thing is a trap just for you, Mr Kurogane," the earth dragon mocked. "I am Erutan, the Dragon Slayer of Earth, and my friend is called Garren the…well, I should let him tell you. Oh, and I have three more friends on the other side of the wall to take care of your guildmates!"

"Lucy!"

"Shorty!"

"Before you two try, I'm sure that you can break my wall with enough time, but it's heavily reinforced with hardened minerals from the deep mantle. It'll take a while, and careful – don't wanna collapse the ceiling, do we?"

"I am going to kill you!" Gajeel roared.

"If you wanna help your friends, then your goal is simple. Defeat me, Natsu. Defeat Garren, Gajeel. Then go and save your friends. You might wanna hurry, he's waiting down there," Erutan pointed to a doorway.

Gajeel glanced at Natsu, who nodded, and took off down the hallway as fast as his legs could go. If Shorty got hurt, he'd have to kill someone. This was his own fault! This trap was for him, and Shorty might get hurt. He'd have to trust Lily to look after her. He swore bitterly.

"Did Metalicana teach you that potty language?" A voice rumbled in the darkness. A finger clicked and magical sconces on the walls blazed into life, revealing the chamber. It was enormous and square, and at the very end was a man. He was tall, taller than Gajeel and far broader. His face was swamped by messy black hair and beard. He wore simple britches and a long coat that revealed his biceps and chest. He had no shoes at all.

"You're Garren, I take it?" Gajeel asked brusquely. Then, something hit him in the brain, always a bit behind his mouth. "Wait! You know Metalicana? How?"

"There'll be plenty of time for answers when you beat me," he replied guardedly.

"Fine, don't say you didn't ask for it, Gihi! **Iron Dragon's Roar!**" The metal cyclone of blades hurtled across the room, but Garren waited patiently for it, a smile growing on his face.

"I've waited a long time for this day! **Iron God's Howl!**"


	5. Heated Battle

Levy, Lucy and Lily were in another part of the ruin. Levy was working along the walls, scribbling down everything that she could gather from the writing. Lucy helped her at first, but after a small time began to realise just how much Levy was on a different level from her.

_Yeah, a lower level! Gihi!_

Huh. Where had that thought come from? Anyway, Lucy sat down with Lily and just watched Levy go. How did one start to learn a language without knowing anything about it? Lucy had no idea, but Levy clearly had some clue as to what to do.

"Impressive. I can see why Gajeel is drawn to her," Lily mumbled.

"What?" Lucy asked, shocked. Lily looked startled, as if he hadn't meant to speak out loud. The pair stared at each other for a long moment and then looked away. That was a lot of information for a few words, Lucy thought. She smiled, thinking that Levy was also drawing lots of information from a few words.

"Does Gajeel like her, then?" She whispered to the Exceed.

"I shouldn't say too much," Lily replied with a large smirk. That in itself was a huge statement.

"He does! He totally does!" Lucy thrilled.

"Who does what, Lu-chan?" Lucy looked up. Levy had walked over and was looking down with curious eyes. Lucy and Lily panicked and babbled some nonsense that thoroughly confused Levy. At last, Lucy composed herself enough to ask a question.

"Did you get anywhere?" She asked, eager to distract Levy. The smaller girl nodded, holding up her notepad.

"You see, I've picked up a pattern in the sequence of words. I don't think I could have gotten anywhere without Gajeel and Natsu's help. Every sentence seems to start with a collection of characters in varying arrangements. It seems like the speaker always comes first in a sentence, with the mood and characteristics altering that."

"What do you mean?" Lily asked.

"Well, as you know, a dragon always has an element. Fire, Iron, Sky, Light, Shadow and so on. I think this character here represents a dragon. It appears a lot, but only as a basic framework with additions. I think those additions represent the elements. Then these parts on the right refer to the mood of the sentence."

"Wow, Levy-chan! You're so amazing!" Lucy gushed, embracing her friend, who blushed with embarrassment.

"No, I haven't really done anything. I don't have any meaning from the words," Levy replied humbly. "I still have a lot more work to do."

"Make sure you rest," Lucy replied sternly. "I know that you overwork yourself."

Levy frowned. She might overwork herself, but that was not a sentence that ever got aimed at anyone else, was it? No, it was a sentence for the weakling who couldn't look after herself. No one ever told Natsu or Gajeel to stop fighting – that they were going too far. Well Levy herself had told Natsu that once, against Laxus, but still.

"Lu-chan? What do you think of Gajeel?" She asked. Unseen by them, Lily stepped away into the gloom. He didn't want to tread on this discussion. He felt like he shouldn't violate Gajeel's privacy to Levy, but he had no plans to monitor this conversation either.

"Huh? What brought that on?"

"Gajeel's all about strength, isn't he?" She sighed. "I'm not strong enough for him, am I?"

"You silly little girl," Lucy huffed. "You're never gonna realise that Gajeel likes you for you, are you? He likes your other assets."

Lucy was about to launch into a tirade on Levy's better qualities when there was a tremendous roar down the corridor. A beast emerged, hurtling towards them at breakneck speed, looking like a rhinoceros carved from granite, or the D-class monsters from pandemonium. Startled, Lucy began to fumble for her keys, but there was no way that she'd make it in time.

"**Solid Script: Guard!**" Levy threw up the word, creating a barricade that the beast slammed into, recoiling in pain. Its attack wasn't that strong, Levy noted. If she could just…but the beast recovered too quickly for her, lowering it's now broken horn to gore.

"**Open Gate of the Bull: Taurus!**" An enormous great axe appeared out of the ether, carving a tremendous wound into the beast as its owner mooed.

"I won't let you hurt the one and a half nice bodies behind me!"

"What was that!?" Levy snarled, but her attention was drawn as the beast, beaten, vanished in a puff of magic. That wasn't a normal beast, it was… "A summon?"

"Kukuku, very good," a voice said, dripping sarcasm. Levy and Lucy watched as three people appeared, detaching themselves from the gloom of the corridor. The summoner was immediately obvious, a young man dressed in leathers with a headdress and a fur cloak.

There was also a young woman, and Lucy made the connection to Flare Corona at once. A long mane of golden hair writhed and twitched, attached to a head with a cruel, leering expression. She was dressed in a black catsuit, making Levy jealous of her curves.

The third looked like a Buddhist monk, dressed in green robes and carrying a stave. His head was shaven and he had stern features behind a thin beard.

"Who are you?" Levy demanded.

"I am Melk," the monk stated. "And these are my associates, Rakarth and Lyria. We are from Moonlight Jaguar."

"A dark guild," Levy said boldly. "What business do you have here?"

"Oh, that's simple. You see, our job is to crush you!" Melk waved a glowing hand and Taurus vanished. Magic cancelling? Lucy balked. This was bad! If that man could seal their magic, they were in trouble as neither was a physical fighter. "Rakarth!"

"Right! **Summoning Magic: Naggaroth Cobra!**" Rakarth the summoner made an intricate series of gestures with his hands and a huge serpent with lustrous violet scales appeared out of thin air, lashing out towards the two girls.

"**Solid Script: Fire!**"

"**Open Gate of the Ram: Aries!**"

"Nope!" Melk waved his hand and both spells failed to materialize. Levy and Lucy were helpless! A black rush passed between them, Lily doubling, tripling, dectupling in size, his sword growing to match. A powerful downward strike smashed the snake's head into the floor, cracking the stonework and banishing the beast.

"Lily!" They both cried.

"Tch, I can't banish his magic if it's part of his body," Melk noted with annoyance.

"No problem," Lyria said, speaking up for the first time. Her hair was writhing more violently as she became excited. "I want to play, anyway! I prefer to torture men, but little girls do squeal so nicely!"

"Charming," Lily spat, taking a moment to absorb the situation. He'd seen the cancellation and summoning magic. The girl's magic seemed obvious. The problem was that monk and his null magic. As long as he was here, the girls couldn't fight. "Levy, Lucy. I'm gonna separate the monk from the other two. Can you handle them?"

"Um…," they both replied hesitantly.

"I believe in you." With those words, Lily surged forwards, wings erupting from his back.

"Let him go!" Melk shouted, running into the darkness. I'll beat him, you two get the girls!" As the pair receded into the gloom, the four combatants got ready to fight.

"Which one do you want?" Lyria asked.

"That blondie has summoning magic too. I'd like to test the fortitude of the celestial spirits."

"Fine by me!" Lyria's mouth split into an evil, chilling smile. "I wanna have that Shorty squirming in pain."

Levy balked. She was nervous. Not only was she not very strong, but she wasn't a good fighter. Didn't know when to attack, when to defend and so on. But she was much braver than she realised, always keeping her eyes open, even when a punch was coming for her.

"Stay together," Lucy advised, drawing her fluer d'etoile. "We should fight as one."

"Okay," Levy replied, now more nervous. What if she let Lu-chan down? She looked up at the face of her friend and found strength. Lu-chan was scared too, but wasn't going to back down. "Wait! What's happened to Gajeel and Natsu?"

"Them? They're being dealt with," Rakarth answered. The two evil mages were stunned as the girls began to laugh.

"Sorry, but no one's taking them down," Lucy said with a confident smile.

**===][===**

"**Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!**" Natsu shouted, charging through a hail of stone needles. Erutan blocked with his forearm, rocky scales protecting him from being burnt.

"**Earth Dragon's Talon!**" Rock blades formed around his fingers and he slashed, forcing Natsu to jump back, a thin line of red appearing across his chest. "Kyeh! That all you got? Show me your lightning mode!"

Natsu smirked. "Just you and me, slayer on slayer. I'll beat you without an unfair advantage."

"Haven't you noticed, Salamander? Here, I have the advantage! We're deep underground, with tonnes of rock pressing down upon us – this is my battlefield. **Earth Dragon's Spear!**" Multiple sharpened pillars of rock erupted from the floor, ceiling and walls, moving to impale Natsu. He jumped and dodged, avoiding the blows.

Suddenly, the ground he was standing on surged upwards as Erutan was attempting to squish him against the ceiling. Wreathing his fist in flame, Natsu punched downwards, shattering the rock. As he landed, he looked around, realizing that he'd lost sight of the other slayer.

Natsu screamed as something slammed into his back. He whirled around to see a stone projection of the Earth dragon appearing from the floor, his fist shifted into a large mace. He destroyed it in moments, but there were two more appearing.

"Show yourself!" Natsu shouted.

"Now, why would I do that?" Erutan's voice rang mockingly from no discernible source. "I can crush you just like this! Come on Fire Dragon, show me your full power. Aren't you worried about your little girlfriend?"

"Heh. Hahahaha! Lucy's strong. She doesn't need me running to look after her. And she has Levy and Lily by her side. No Fairy Tail mage will fall as long as they have their nakama with them!" Natsu's body began to blaze with fire, brighter and brighter. "Now, if you aren't coming out, I'm gonna come and find you!"

**===][===**

Gajeel spat blood and cart-wheeled through the air, slamming into the hard ground multiple times before righting himself. Despite the pain of the bastard's howl, he was grinning ferociously. A God Slayer! Natsu had beaten his. Laxus would probably have beaten his. Wendy had tied. Now it was his time to prove himself!

"Bring it on, old man!"

"I'm forty five," Garren noted blandly. "I wish all of you bloody youngsters would stop considering me old."

"Don't care, I'll beat the shit outta you, whatever. **Iron Dragon's Club!**" Gajeel charged forwards, his right arm forming into a metal pillar which shot out towards the god slayer. Garren passively raised a hand, catching the attack.

"Is that all you've got?"

"Not even close! **Iron Dragon's Sword!**" Using the club as a pivot, Gajeel span head of heels, changing a leg into an extending blade, aiming for the other man's neck. Garren ducked under the swing and drove a fist into Gajeel's gut.

"**Iron God's Club!**" The fist shot out, extending into a pillar of black metal, sending Gajeel all the way back across the room. "I have spent over a decade training my body. Even if my magic wasn't superior to yours, my reflexes and strength are. You might say that I am hand crafted to destroy you."

"You seem to care a lot about me, old geezer," Gajeel grunted as he swayed back onto his feet. "But you've spent a decade waiting for me? Jeez, I was trapped in time for most of that!"

"A minor inconvenience. Metalicana was sure that you'd return. It is a shame that you still have the body of a child, though. I'd hoped that you'd be an adult, properly strong."

"Bastard. Don't drop that name like it means nothing."

"No, no, no! It is a great name! In fact, you could say that it is my name too!"

"What!?"

"I'm saying too much. Damn it, but I've been alone for too long. Meeting another human is making me garrulous. See? Here I go again. I should have just said: **Iron God's Spear: Daemon Logs!**"

"**Iron Dragon's Spear: Daemon Logs!**" Gajeel countered the move blow for blow, a thousand metal needles impacting each other halfway across the room. Gajeel didn't wait for the attack to end, but charged forward, iron scales covering his skin to ward off any small blows. Garren looked surprised as Gajeel's fist smashed into his face.

"Yes! Using bravery to overcome strength! Brilliant! Just what I wanted!" Ebon scales began to cover Garren's body as well and the two iron masters clashed, their spells augmenting their offence and defence.

"Tell me, Iron dragon! What motivates you? What drives you?"

"I am a Fairy Tail mage! That's all you need to know!"

"Really? We've been watching since you entered the ruins. Driven by lust at all?"

"What!?" Damn his feeble brain, but Gajeel was momentarily stunned by the question and took a blow to the face, before pressing back in.

"She's a real cutie, am I right?"

"Shut up!"

"Shame if my colleagues were to harm her in any way."

"I said; shut up!" Gajeel raged and smashed Garren hard enough to send him sailing across the room and into the wall. Grunting, the god slayer looked up at the dragon slayer, his entire face shrouded in darkness save for those evil red eyes. "I promise you; if she's hurt, I'll carve the same damage from your flesh!"

"Caring about another's well being?" Garren asked, wiping blood from his mouth with the back of his hand. "Metalicana will be pleased."

"Damn you! I don't know what you know about pops or why you give two fucks about me, but I am gonna beat it outta your skull! I don't care if you're a god slayer!"

"God slayer? Who said that I was a god slayer?"

"What!? Grah, damn your riddles! I'm just gonna beat the shit out of you!"

"Yes, Gajeel Redfox. Defeat me, and I promise that I'll answer all of your questions."


	6. Another Metalicana

Through stone corridors they hurried, smashing relentless attacks into one another. Lily had no choice but to admit that this fool was rather strong. His monk garb gave away his strong martial background, spinning his stave to parry his sword again and again.

Both had enough strength to smash rock, missed or dodged blows shattering the walls. Lily grunted at that. As a Fairy Tail mage, he was used to property damage…but this ruin mattered to Gajeel. He had to be more careful. Almost as he thought the words, his sword swung and bounced off of a wall.

Huh? Why hadn't that wall broken? Lily noticed that it was different than the sandstone walls, instead hewn from solid bedrock.

"Hah! That's our bosses' handiwork! An impenetrable earth barrier. Your friends have no escape!"

"So…this wall is unbreakable…I want to get to the other side…and you can cancel magic." Lily grinned, Gajeel's trademark laugh rumbling from his feline mouth. Melk grimaced, stepping back. "I think I'm gonna have you open a path for me!"

**===][===**

Back with the girls, summoner Rakarth began to move, drawing magic into his hands. A series of gestures ensued, moulding the magic into the necessary shape to unleash his beast.

"**Summoning Magic: Dal'yr Eagle!**" A huge eagle emerged, wingtips brushing the walls. Its plumage was snowy white, set against the malicious yellow of its irises. It screeched as it came forward, talons swooping down to impale.

"I can do this! I've had my second origin unlocked too! **Solid Script: Blitz!**" The golden word was written in front of Levy, and then disappeared into a thunderbolt, impacting the eagle's chest. It screeched in pain, losing its grasp on the air and smashing into the floor.

"Not bad, Levy-chan!" The eagle screeched again, dragging itself onto its massive talons. Lucy took a key from her bag, the head shining with golden light. "I don't think so! I can't let Levy outdo me, so here's something new! **Open gate of the Scale Bearer: Libra!**"

The spirit appeared, floating above the ground. She swung her scales, summoning her magic to her. The eagle stopped and began to ascend, slamming into the ceiling with tremendous force. Another swing and it returned to the floor with great speed, shattering the stone work and disappearing as it was beaten.

"They defeated my eagle? Impressive," Rakarth noted passively. He didn't appear at all distressed by the loss of his beast.

"No great deal," Lyria responded with a crooked leer. In a heartbeat, tendrils of her hair erupted from the floor, snaring Libra. Lucy cried in surprise, but leapt back herself as more hair strands snatched at her and Levy. Tighter and tighter they constricted until Libra vanished back to the celestial world.

"Just like Flare, what a dirty move," Lucy hissed.

"What? Attacking from a blind spot is basic strategy!" Lyria's hair retracted, sliding out of the ground at her feet. An electrical discharge crackled around the tips. "If you remember, the red-headed whore you fought from Raven Tail had fire in her hair. But I'm blonde! **Voltaire Cannon!**"

Her hair pointed at the two Fairy Tail mages and a lightning blast shot across the room.

"**Solid Script: Mirror!**" The word emerged before Levy, reflective and shining as it absorbed the attack. Levy grunted under the strain, but realised that the attack was too strong for her to deflect. She jumped aside a moment before the spell exploded.

"Pathetic," Lyria stated. "What a tiny level of magical power."

"**Summoning Magic: Telarian Mastodon!**" A new beast emerged, a massive mammoth covered by onyx armoured plates. It got approximately halfway to the girls before the entire floor collapsed downwards. The beast's own weight killed it, slamming into the floor and breaking ribs. As it disappeared in a puff of magic, Virgo could be seen emerging from the floor.

"Is it time for my punishment?" She asked, before vanishing under an electrical discharge.

"Yes," Lyria hissed to the smoking crater where the spirit had been. "Consider yourself punished. Rakarth, this is taking too long! Bring _it _out already!"

"Fine, fine. I was just enjoying myself. **Summoning Magic: Arachnarok Tarantula!**" The summon appeared beneath Rakarth, bearing him upon its back as it reared up. Lucy and Levy quailed. It was horrific…eight blank eyes crowned the indistinct head where mandibles constantly worked. Its elephantine body was covered in fine hairs, eight legs like tree trunks supporting the bloated body.

"S…spider!" Levy shrieked. They were bad enough when they were tiny!

"Hey girl," Rakarth said affectionately, patting the spider's back. It practically purred; the noise bizarre on such a horrible creature. "Could you tie them up for me please?" In response, the spider vomited webs from its mouth down the corridor. Levy managed to write 'fire' just in time to burn the webs coming her way, but Lucy was snared, her arms bound to her side.

"Gah! I can't reach my keys!" She cried.

"Lu-chan!"

"How sad to be so helpless! Kyahaha!" Lyria fired another electrical discharge down the corridor, aiming right for Lucy. Levy jumped in the way, writing another 'mirror'. But she still couldn't hold it and the word shattered, cutting her with the backlash.

"Levy-chan!" Lucy screamed.

"I'm alright," Levy stated. This was a minor injury. Not like what Minerva had done to Lucy. Or what Bacchus had done to Elfman. Or Yomazu had done to Gajeel. She would not be so weak so as to fall to a few minor cuts. But she didn't notice the hair that wrapped around her ankle. She had enough time to make a noise of surprise before she was whipped sideways and slammed into the wall.

"Now, you're in my grasp, little girl," Lyria sneered, more and more strands of hair reaching out to wrap around Levy's ankles and thighs to drag her towards their owner. Levy managed to gather enough wits to reach down, generating the word 'cut' in an attempt to break her bonds. But her attempt stopped as lightning struck her.

"Levy-chan!" Lucy screamed again, struggling against the damned spider silk that bound her.

"Stay still, Lyria's always fun to watch work," Rakarth advised from his steed. "She knows how to torture."

A strand of hair formed a whip and cracked down on Levy's back, eliciting a scream of pain.

"Stop!" Lucy pleaded. Lyria ignored her, more strands of hair reaching down to bind Levy and channel more lightning. "I said stop!"

"You'll have your turn," Lyria promised, lifting Levy's sagging body into the air and slamming more whips into her as she hung helplessly. There weren't any screams this time. "Just enjoy the sho-wait, wha?!" Lyria's exclamation was due to the fact that Levy had simply disappeared into thin air. The two dark mages looked around, startled, before noticing the bizarre figure behind Lucy. The figure of a clock.

"Automatic danger response mode activated," the clock spirit, Horologium announced, saluting. The battered form of Levy rested cradled in his interior.

"I told you to stop," Lucy hissed, her face covered with rage unusual for her fair features. "You were hurting my nakama and I told you to stop."

"Who cares? You're still stuck in my web and-"

"LOKE! I know that you can hear me! Get your ass through your gate now!" Lucy bellowed. In a golden flash the celestial lion appeared, cutting through the silk bonds with his blazing fists. Freed, Lucy began taking multiple keys from her waist, three in total.

"I'm angry; more angry than I've ever been," she declared. "I've never been in a position where I was the stronger of a group, where I am the one who should protect the other. And you hurt her, my best friend. I'm going all out to crush you. **Open gate of the twins: Gemini! **Form into me at once!"

The siblings emerged, instantly fusing together into a perfect copy of Lucy. Lucy pressed a key into her doppelganger's hand and held another herself.

"**Open gate of the archer: Sagittarius!**"

"**Open gate of the paired fish: Pisces!**"

"W-wait!" Rakarth stammered, looking at the formidable line up. The horse-man, pulling an arrow from his quiver. The lion, glaring hate through his glasses, calmly readjusting his gloves. The mother and son, summoned in their ultimate form. "You can't have…five gates open at the same time! That's not possible!"

"Loke. Sagittarius. Pisces. Attack," Lucy ordered coldly.

**===][===**

Wreathed in flame, Natsu shoved his fists into the floor, remembering how he shattered Gray's ice at the beach. He'd need more power to break stone, but the strategy was the same.

"**Fire Dragon's Super Flame!**" He roared, sending titanic qualities of dragon fire – flame that can burn even iron – into the ground. It began to splinter and fracture until a ten metre section of the floor came apart as a fireball burst forth. In the middle was Erutan, arms curled up to shield against the fire.

"Didn't I warn you about collapsing the ceiling!?" He shouted, shocked. A moment later Natsu's fist drove into his face, sending him through chunks of debris and into the floor, carving a great channel into the stone. After a moment, Erutan managed to drag his upper body into an upright position.

"Had enough?" Natsu asked, advancing slowly towards his prone opponent. Erutan scowled and shoved his hand into the floor, breaking off a segment of stone. He shoved it into his mouth and began to chew. "H-hey, that's not fair!"

"I told you that I have the advantage here," the earth dragon stated, getting back to his feet. "If the worst comes to the worst, I'll purposefully collapse the ceiling and crush us both."

"What's the point in that? Don't you have nakama waiting for you?"

"If I lose, how can I return to my guild?" Erutan snarled.

Natsu frowned, as if trying to formulate a complicated concept. "There's no shame in losing, but particularly to someone of my level. Does your guild assume all of its members are the strongest people in the world? You're not as strong as old man Gildartz or Jura. It's only your pride that would stop you."

"Shut up. I will not bring shame to my guild!" The earth dragon surged forward and punched Natsu in the face causing him to stumble back a great distance.

"That's fine. I won't step on your feelings." Natsu held out a hand, generating a ball of fire. "But I ain't gonna give up on mine! I'll fight for my nakama that you are threatening. I'll show you the true power of a guild and the true power of a slayer!"

"This is the power that breaks all bonds?" Erutan asked. "Fine. Crush me if you must, Natsu Dragneel, but do it with all your might! Don't hold back!" The slayer stooped and began shovelling rocks into his mouth, preparing for an almighty roar.

"As you wish!" Natsu twitched as the new power began to flow, nerves alight with the power of Laxus' lightning, filling his body and fusing with his flame. **"Thunder-Flame Dragon's Roar!**"

"**Earth Dragon's Roar!**" The clash was brief and one-sided. The twin element roar eclipsed the other in seconds, also engulfing the unfortunate slayer beyond and destroying most of the corridor. Natsu staggered and fell to his haunches, panting with exertion. He'd picked up more cuts and bruises than he'd thought, and fusing the lightning was always tiring.

"Not bad. You certainly wore me out," he said quietly. Erutan coughed, a little blood coming out. He was completely flat to the ground and battered to the point where he couldn't possibly move.

"I don't want your pity," he croaked, tears in his eyes. "I have defiled my holy place with failure."

Natsu looked up at the ruin's ceiling. "This place belongs to your dad, doesn't it? It's underground, which is odd, but your dad is an earth dragon, so I guess that it makes sense."

"Shut up. You won; I don't need to talk more."

"Can you read the writing here?"

"No. Dad never taught me."

"Okay. When this is over, I'll make sure that I can get Levy to make a copy of everything here. I'll send it to you somehow."

"What? Why?"

"You need better nakama. I'll be the first, since I'm your brother dragon. I'm sure Gajeel'll join me if you give him a fight like that! Lucy's always looking for new friends and Levy…she'll forgive anything. Don't worry; I'm sure she'd demand that I give you the transcript! Hihi!"

"I…I don't understand you."

"No problem. Nakama don't need to understand one another."

**===][===**

Lily had subdued Melk by this time, and had been planning to slam his head repeatedly into the curtain wall until he removed it, but the wall had collapsed by itself. Had Natsu or Gajeel defeated the person who made it? Happy, he knocked the monk out and returned to his chibi form, since he needed to conserve magic.

"Lily!" He slammed sideways as a little ball of blue fur hugged him. "I was so scared and lost! I'm so glad to find you!"

"Happy! Get off of me! Have you seen Natsu or Gajeel?"

"Aye! There was this guy who wanted to fight them!"

"Who?"

"I dunno, Natsu threw me away before I could really see. But he had dragon slaying magic!"

"A dragon slayer? Happy, I'm going to go and find Gajeel. Can you go down that way and check on the girls for me?"

"Aye sir!" Happy chirped, glad to have a direction to go in. Lily watched the blue exceed disappear down the corridor before heading onwards himself. He needed to find his partner. Lord knows what that big lummox was up to without his guidance.

**===][===**

Gajeel dropped to one knee, screaming in pain. That last blow had dislocated his left shoulder. Without hesitating he wrenched it right back into place, eliciting a whistle of approval from the god slayer.

"Impressive tolerance to pain and damage."

"I'm made of Iron, baby!" Gajeel replied with a fierce grin. It was all for show, though. He was beginning to realise the difference in level here. The simple, horrible fact of the matter was that god slaying magic was superior to dragon slaying magic. He'd watched the bastard reenergise by eating iron shards that Gajeel had created. But Gajeel's teeth could not break the black iron.

Gajeel was sure that Salamander had said that there was some trick to eating god-elements, but he couldn't remember what it was. Salamander was a moron who spouted a lot of bullshit, most of which Gajeel tuned out.

But even beyond the magic, this arsehole was a fine physical specimen. Tall and built like a rhino. If he was stronger than Gajeel and with superior magic, what was left to do?

"Hmm, you clearly need a moment to recover. Fine, for such an impressive display of machismo, I'll let you in on a secret. I am no more a god slayer than the young Dreyar is a dragon slayer."

Gajeel sat there panting for a moment, trying to make sense of those words. Did he mean Laxus? If so…

"You've been implanted with a god slaying lacryma? How fucking rare is that supposed to be?"

"My understanding is that it may be one of a kind. Still, I cannot take credit for finding it. It was given to me. By Metalicana."

"Why the fuck would he give something like that to some random stranger?" Gajeel puffed. But he'd had time to rest and drew back to his full height, wringing out his shoulders and cracking his neck.

"Ready to continue?" Garren asked with a mocking tone.

"I'm not the sort to give up, fuckface. You gonna tell me why you're testing me?"

"Hmm? A little smarter than you appear."

"You could've pressed your attack. Instead you wait. You set this trap and seem to have a weird interest in me and you've met my pops. It doesn't take a fucking genius to figure out that you're testing my strength. I wanna know why."

"It's nothing complicated, really."

"Then tell me!" Gajeel shouted angrily. "Just cut this fucking bullshit!"

"Ah, ah, ah. We've just established that I'm testing you. I want you to impress me. The more you hurt me, the more I'll tell you."

"You're a fucking weirdo." Gajeel reached down and picked up one of the many black iron spearheads that had been fired off earlier. He closed his eyes and focused. Garren moved slightly, curious as to what the dragon slayer was doing. His magical power was decreasing? Gajeel swallowed the spearhead.

"What!?"

"Gihi! Pretty fucking delicious! Took me a while, but I remembered what moron said. You gotta reduce your magical power to zero in order to eat god metal!" It had only been a small amount, but Gajeel felt new power flow through his weary limbs. He dropped into an attacking pose, his body being covered by black scales. "Black's a good colour for me!"

"Yes! Yes! This is what I wanted! Show me what you've got!" Garren spluttered as Gajeel drove a fist into his chest so hard that the air rushed away from the pair by the concussive force. The god slayer hurtled into the far wall, disappearing in a cloud of stone debris and dust.

Gajeel's magic collapsed all at once and he fell prostrate onto the floor. Damn it, but he didn't think that he'd ever been so exhausted. He really felt like he needed to throw up. He turned his head slightly as he heard someone call his name. Lily was rushing up.

"Hey, Lil. Missed all the fun," he said feebly, making a small grin.

"I leave you alone for five minutes," the exceed replied teasingly.

Lily screamed in pain as a black pillar slammed him into the wall. In his small form his body had no defence and he fell unconscious. Eyes wide, Gajeel turned back to where Garren was advancing from where he'd fallen. It wasn't like he wasn't hurt; his jacket was gone and he was bleeding from numerous wounds.

"H-how?" Gajeel croaked.

"If I had been a normal human, that might have beaten me. Unfortunately for you, I am not exactly a normal human. The reason that Metalicana gave me a lacryma was that I am not some random stranger. Let me give you a clue; I have no magical power at all. All of my magic comes from my lacryma."

"All humans have some magic," Gajeel stated, trying and failing to stand. "Even though ninety percent of humanity never develop it."

"Think harder, Gajeel. I am not in the ninety percent of magic-less humans or the ten percent of mages."

"I'm no maths whizz, but I think you gotta be in there somewhere."

"No, I came from outside."

"Outside of humanity?"

"For fucks…I guess Metalicana didn't choose you for brains. I am from outside of your world. There is someone in your guild like me. An old woman."

"Porylusica?" Gajeel gasped with dawning realisation. "You mean…"

"Yes, Gajeel. I am Edolas Metalicana."

"T-that's not-," Gajeel stammered incoherently.

"It's pretty simple. Just like Grandine, Metalicana sought me out to make sure that his son developed properly. Porylusica is a healer. I am not. Grandine is kind. Metalicana is not. My duty was to make sure that you became strong. To that order, Metalicana granted me power greater than yours. And my body, though human, bears some of the dragon's power, making me stronger and sturdier than normal."

"This is bullshit!" Gajeel shouted, lifting his upper body on his arms. "I haven't seen my dad for over ten years and the only thing I know is that he's orchestrated an impossible test for me!? I have no chance of beating you! A fucking edo-dragon with god slaying magic! Damn you to hell!"

"If you can't beat me, I will kill you," Garren stated.

"What!? Why!?"

"I told you, and you know this. Metalicana is not a kind dragon. He is pragmatic and authoritarian. If you cannot live up to his ideals, then you are a waste of time."

"No, pops was an asshole, but he loves me!"

"Love. They say that love allows mages to transcend barriers. Fine, if you cannot beat me alone, I will tap into that." Garren marched over to Gajeel and dragged him away by his hair. Gajeel glanced over at the fallen form of his cat. Lily was clearly breathing, but wasn't getting up.

"Where are you taking me?"

"The blue-haired girl. If I hurt her, will you get stronger?"


	7. From the Shadows

It was Loke first. Crossing the distance rapidly, he glowed with the light of Regulus, blinding their opponents. For the spider, having eight eyes and no way to blink became a problem and it bucked and reared, screeching in pain

Sagittarius fired, eight arrows for eight eyes. The spider vanished, letting its owner fall to the floor with a startled cry of pain. Then, the Pisces duo was upon them, attacking with their blades. Lyria screamed as the mother brutally cut her hair to get at the woman beyond. Neither dark mage was a powerful close combatant and were quickly overwhelmed by the fish spirits.

Then the celestial spirits just vanished. There was a moment of hope that the girl had run out of power. But the truth was that she banished her spirits in order to conserve her power. She clasped hands with Gemini, the only spirit remaining.

"**Survey the Heaven, Open the Heaven...****  
****All the stars, far and wide...****  
****Show me thy appearance...****  
****With such shine.****  
****O Tetrabiblos...****  
****I am the ruler of the stars...****  
****Aspect became complete...****  
****Open thy malevolent gate.****  
****O 88 Stars of the heaven...****  
****Shine!****  
****Urano Metria!**"

The two dark mages were engulfed by the blinding light of the stars. It was overwhelming, devastating, and they were vanquished, along with a lot of stonework. Gemini returned to the celestial world and Lucy staggered, falling to her knees. She didn't think she'd ever used her magic quite as vigorously as she had in the last few minutes.

"Wow, Lu-chan." Lucy turned around to see that Levy had pulled herself up, resting her back against a piece of masonry that had fallen over. She was blushing, staring at Lucy with something that looked akin to hero worship. "I always knew that you were super strong."

"Don't be silly," Lucy replied, kneeling next to her friend so as to check her injuries.

"I'm okay," Levy said dismissively, trying to wave her away.

"You were unconscious," Lucy retorted.

"Only for a minute," Levy countered hotly.

"Stop wriggling and let me look you over!"

"Stop it, I'm fine! I don't need you to remind me how weak I am!"

"You were hurt protecting me! It's my fault that you're injured!"

The two women were glaring at each other, but suddenly all of their anger collapsed. It'd been a stressful few minutes. Lucy sat down next to Levy and let the smaller girl rest her head on her shoulder. They didn't say anything for a while, their laboured breathing the only sound in the cavernous hallway.

"I'm sorry that I couldn't support you properly," Levy said at last. "I'm not as strong as you are."

"I'm sorry that I didn't figure a way out of that web faster. I let you get hurt."

"I'm not made of glass, Lu-chan! I'm a Fairy Tail mage too, you know."

"Yeah, but Gajeel will be angry with me now," Lucy said, wiggling her eyebrows.

"W-what!? Why would he be angry?" Levy cried. Lucy smiled as Levy tried to cover up some of her injuries in a ham-fisted manner. _Worried about someone worrying about you?_

"Don't be an idiot, Levy-chan. It doesn't suit you. Gajeel's been your dark knight for a while now, hasn't he? He doesn't like you getting hurt."

"You know why," Levy said sadly. "It's because he feels guilty for hurting me, not because he cares about me."

Lucy snorted. "Sure. Because he gives Jet and Droy the same level of concern."

"I-I…don't say confusing things!" Levy huffed and folded her arms in the most adorable pouting expression ever. Lucy giggled, but suddenly had a face full of blue fur, hugging on to her and weeping.

"Lucy! I got lost so many times!" Happy cried. "I'm so glad that you're okay!"

"I…can't…breathe!" Lucy panted, managing to pry the exceed from her face. She smiled to see her friend again. "Are Natsu and Gajeel alright?"

"I don't know. The last thing I saw was Lily going to check on them. But they're both too stupid to know when they're outclassed. Nothing can possibly defeat those two!"

"Oh no?"

The trio snapped around at the baritone voice. Garren advanced out of the gloom, dragging a semi-conscious Gajeel behind him.

"Gajeel!" Levy screamed.

"Shorty…run…," he croaked.

"No!" Levy shouted, staggering to her feet. "I won't leave you again like on Tenroujima! You told me to stay by your side!"

"Strong enough to beat Gajeel," Lucy mumbled. She was all out of energy, and even if she was fresh, she'd used up so many spirits. Who did she have left? Cancer and Scorpio. She couldn't summon Aquarius unless…

"Levy, give me some water!" She shouted. Levy nodded in understanding, producing the word 'water' before Lucy. She jammed the key in. "**Open gate of the water bearer: Aquarius!**" Lucy dearly wished that she could summon Scorpio for a unison raid, but she was all out of power now. This was it.

Lucy and Levy cried out as a jar hammered into their heads.

"You summon me from a word!?" Aquarius exploded. "Is there no limit to your stupidity?"

"This is serious! He's going to kill us!" Lucy shouted back. Aquarius turned back to look at the large man, dragging the slayer behind him. She ground her teeth.

"No one abuses my owner but me!" She shouted, summoning a vortex of water. Garren tutted in disappointment and threw Gajeel in the way. He was struck by the water and slammed into the far wall. As Lucy cried in dismay, Garren howled, catching the three women and Happy in the ebon blast.

"N…no," Gajeel mumbled from his position. He could see that Aquarius had been banished and the two girls were badly hurt. At least the fight with him had reduced Garren's magical power and the damage of his attacks. Lucy looked to be unconscious from damage and exertion, but he could see Levy moving slightly. He had to help her! But he couldn't get up. He was so badly hurt and had no magical power.

"Damn it, Salamander!" He shouted at the ceiling. "You make it look so easy! But…I'm not like you!"

Levy looked up blearily as Garren's hand descended, catching her by the throat and hefting her into the air. She struggled feebly against his iron strength, frightened out of her mind. This man had beaten Gajeel! She wasn't in the same league! She was at least three leagues out of his league!

"Don't take this personally, little girl," Garren rumbled. "I take no pleasure in causing you harm."

"And yet you do it anyway," she responded more boldly than she felt.

"I can see why you like this one," Garren called back to Gajeel. "She's got a lot of guts. Which is ironic, since she's so small. How hard would I have to press to snap this neck? It feels like I have to try _not _to snap it!"

"I'm stronger than I look," Levy replied with a small smile. "I could take you out with one spell. One word."

"Oh?" Garren's smile deepened. "Now, you've interested me. I am powerful enough to defeat Gajeel. What do you think that you could possibly do to put a dent in me?"

Levy's trembling hands raised and waved in Garren's face as she cast. Garren raised a brow as nothing happened.

"You miscast."

"No, I made the word behind you."

"You expect me to fall for that one?" He shook his head. Ah well, no harm in looking. He turned to see that she had in fact summoned a word, but not next to him, next to Gajeel. Ah, so she'd summoned iron to recharge him. Perhaps the cleverest move she could have made, really.

Wait…it was a little way away, but wasn't that word too long to be iron? And it was black, not silver. He squinted, trying to read backwards. She'd written…shadow.

"Thanks Shrimp," Gajeel grinned. "You're always thinking faster than me."

Since the magic games, Gajeel had tried to seal the shadows again, but he'd never succeeded. But now…Shrimp needed him! He sucked in the word shadow like a refreshing drink, feeling the power surge through him. But it wasn't enough for him. This man was hurting Shrimp! He needed more! More! Darkness rushed inwards towards Gajeel like a flowing river.

"He's eating all of the shadows in the ruin," Levy noted with satisfaction.

"But this is a huge underground building! It's filled with darkness!"

"Gihi," Levy stated simply. Levy wasn't really sure what happened next. One moment she was in Garren's grasp and the next she was cradled in Gajeel's left arm, his right extended in the space where Garren had been. Only now, there was a huge trail into and through the wall. And the next wall. And the next.

"Gajeel," she whispered, looking up into the face of the iron-shadow dragon. He was terrifying and…thrilling! His hair was rising on invisible wilds, his eyes now colourless and vague. His skin was hard and metallic and his grin wild and feral.

"You alright?"

"Yes," she said quietly.

"I'll be right back."

Garren was picking himself up slowly as Gajeel came for him again. He howled, but Gajeel simply vanished into ethereal shadows before rising out of the ground, dealing a tremendous uppercut to Garren's jaw. The god slayer slammed through the ceiling, revealing a second floor. A moment later Gajeel hit him again, returning him through the floor.

Garren spat blood and staggered to his feet. Where was the bastard? He span, feeling a presence behind him. Gajeel grabbed his throat, leering like a daemon of the warp.

"You hurt her, you bastard. I told you what I'd do to you."

"She's weak. The weak die, right?"

Punch. Three walls. Punch. Two walls. Punch. Floor. Punch. Ceiling. Punch. Three walls.

"The job of the strong is to protect the weak," Gajeel declared loudly to his grovelling opponent. "I might be strong, but that woman is a thousand times more precious than me. She is the light that saved my soul from the darkness. She has the strength to forgive any wrong. I will not let you hurt her, not even to insult!"

"Heh. Not bad at all. Metalicana will be pleased."

"Shut up."

"He taught you to be strong. He was afraid that the one lesson you'd missed was the worth of other human beings." Garren coughed loudly, blood staining the floor. Gajeel was about to relent when the god slayer surged to his feet and opened his mouth at point blank range. "**Iron God's Howl!**"

"Pitiful," Gajeel stated as the cyclone abated. Garren took two steps back in abject fear. "**Iron-Shadow Dragon's Roar!**"

Gajeel obliterated several rooms with that one shot, plus a considerable chunk of the mountain. Daylight streamed in through a hole in the ceiling as random chunks of stone and debris collapsed here and there. Gajeel wandered over to his beaten opponent, his power fading.

"Go on, finish it," Garren gasped.

"I would. I hate you, frankly. You're the same sort of asshole that pops was." Gajeel slouched, falling onto his ass. Jeez, he was tired. "Beat me or die. Tch. Metalicana had the same fucking sink or swim policy. 'Hey Gajeel, there's a group of bandits!' Then he'd just throw me into the group and hope I survived. Bastard."

"He wanted you to be strong."

"But I wasn't."

Garren's eyes widened and he turned his head to stare at the dragon slayer, who was sullenly looking out at the sun blazing through the gap in the ceiling.

"All of the strength that I obtained never got me anywhere. Sure, I was the king of a group of retards. Big deal. Salamander's strength eclipsed mine. Then there was Laxus, that fucking asshole. Mira. Erza. Gramps. My strength was meaningless. I was nothing more than a street punk with a mean right hook. Goddamnit, I was nothing!"

A moment passed as Gajeel sat on his anger.

"Not until I joined Fairy Tail. They…don't you fucking dare tell them this…made me a hundred times stronger. And still I languish behind Salamander. In fairness, he's got his second origin, but still, it's annoying."

"He sounds like an older brother to you."

"Don't you fucking start! I'm older than he is damn it!" Gajeel snarled. "Oi, so you've met my dad. You know where he is now?"

"No, I only met him a long time ago."

"Thought so. Damn, he's got a weird way of showing that he loves me."

"We're not the hugging type," Garren replied with a faint laugh.

"Asshole. I can't forgive you. I don't mind you killing me, but you dragged my nakama into it. You dragged Levy into it."

"Levy? Is that her name?"

"Well, I don't use it much. I prefer Shorty."

"She is pretty short," Garren conceded.

"I know, right? She has to reach up to tie her shoelaces!"

"Gihihihi!" They laughed together. Oh man, Gajeel would have to remember that joke and tell it to Shrimp later! Gajeel's smile faded and he became serious again, remembering that she was hurt. And this bastard had done it. He looked over at him, rage glaring in his crimson eyes.

"I forgive you, you old twat."

"What? You just said…"

"I know. But if I couldn't forgive you for hurting Levy, I'd be the biggest hypocrite in the world. She's probably already over it and wanting me to have some kind of father-son bond with you." Gajeel looked away. "Damn it, but I can't match her strength. I still wanna kill you."

"Make your mind up. Are you forgiving me or hating me?"

"Thinking's not my strong suit. I trust my nakama to do that for me."

"Pah. I don't need your forgiveness. I've done my duty. Metalicana can be proud that he's raised a strong son. Now, if you don't mind, I'm gonna just lie here for a few days. Please don't let me swallow my tongue." Garren's breathing lightened and Gajeel realised that the old bastard must have slipped into unconsciousness. About fucking time.

"Fuck you," Gajeel hissed, dragging himself along on his hands since he didn't trust his legs to hold him. "I've gotta check on my girl."


	8. Clumsy Confessions

Gajeel was resting, his eyes closed and arms folded. It'd been two days since the battle with Garren and his cronies. He was intimately frustrated by the immediate aftermath of the fight. He had wanted to check on Levy, but didn't really know what to say. And then the daft woman had spent time worrying about his injuries! He wasn't the midget!

Of course, he had been bleeding profusely on his last legs, but still.

Tch, why was she worrying about him? Little people should look after themselves first. It wasn't like she hadn't picked up quite a few bumps and scrapes. He wondered how she looked so cute in her bandages, but they made him look like some kind of…well, a big oaf. Hmm, maybe it wasn't the bandages.

He scowled to remember how well off Salamander was, crowing about how he won easily. He and Lucy only had a few injuries and were much better off. He wondered when Lucy had become so strong. He was immensely grateful to her for protecting Levy, not that he'd said that out loud, of course.

Lily had spent the last forty eight hours in an unusually petulant manner. Gajeel wasn't sure if he was angry that someone blindsided him while in his smaller, more vulnerable form, or that he'd let it happen in the first place. Lily was proud, after all. Gajeel didn't agree with the Exceed's self-loathing, though. His cat was the best cat in the world as far as he was concerned.

They were still in the ruins. Trying to get Levy to rest or leave while an exciting new language lay before her had proved to be impossible. Even now, Gajeel was watching her work. He refused to leave her alone again. Sure, another attack made no sense and was astronomically unlikely, but he couldn't leave her.

Garren had buggered off at some point. He wasn't part of the dark guild Midnight Jaguar, who had been arrested by the local magical council. As far as Gajeel could tell from his limited interaction, that Earth dragon was like he had been in the past. Hopefully, Salamander had reached him too. His friends seemed like the worst sort of scum to Gajeel, but who knew? Of all people, he knew that people deserved second chances.

He heard Levy sigh and step back from the wall she'd been transcribing from. She looked disappointed, and he fought down the protective urge within him.

"What's up, Shorty?" He asked.

"I'm beaten," she admitted. "I can't get any further."

"You should rest," Gajeel advised.

"It's not a matter of needing a fresh perspective. There's nothing more that I can do."

"I mean, you're all beaten up. You need to rest," Gajeel clarified. "You've been working nonstop for two days now. I've just been sitting here and I'm still aching. You've got to be hurting."

"I'm fine," Levy said dismissively. Grunting in annoyance, Gajeel stood up, walked over to Levy, picked her up by the scruff and sat back down, plonking her next to him. She puffed out her cheeks but said nothing.

"Oi, you may be smart, but when it comes to the body, I know what I'm talking about. Mostly because I've had the crap kicked out of me lots of times in my life. You need to rest, or you won't heal."

"I assume that ended with 'particularly when you're so small'," Levy said wryly.

"Yep!" Gajeel replied brightly. "Hey, did you know that you have to reach up…"

"…to tie my shoelaces? Yes, you've told that joke five times in the last two days. I heard you."

Gajeel was despondent, but the pair quickly lapsed into companionable silence. Levy closed her eyes and at some point her head drooped naturally to the side, resting on Gajeel's bicep. He looked down at her, apparently confused by the situation.

When had this happened? When had this girl changed from victim in a dark alley to close, trusted friend? He could still remember her eyes as he hurt her, eyes that didn't understand such violence, such sadism. Her screams, though few and far between were still there in his memory. When had she become so comfortable with him that she could use him as a pillow?

His face scrunched up in his confusion as he pondered this. It made no sense to him at all, but it had been part of his life for so long. How could someone so small and frail be so strong? His eyes followed the delicate curve along her shoulders and down her side. He wanted to reach out and touch that body, to feel that warmth…

Gajeel suddenly jumped to his feet, startling Levy who flailed around as she aroused from her dozing. She looked up at him in confusion as he paced restlessly before her.

"Stop it!" He barked.

"Wha-huh?" She asked, rubbing her eyes and trying to regain her senses.

"Stop being so goddamn little! It's fucking distracting!"

"What are you saying?" She snapped, face colouring with anger as she surged to her feet.

"Do you know what kind of women I like?" Levy's face drained of all colour at the question. _He was asking her about this? _ "I like big boobs! I like legs that go all the way up! I like dumb blondes who just want a bit of fun and can handle a little rough and tumble!"

"I don't understand!" Levy wailed with tears in her eyes. "Why are you saying this to me?"

"Because you confuse the shit out of me! The old me would never have looked at you in a million years! You're all brainy and weak! You're cute and tiny!"

"How could you talk to me like that?" Levy was crying now and just wanted to flee with all of the emotions building up inside of her. Before she began to run away, she shouted the two words he hoped he'd never hear again. "Gajeel baka!"

Gajeel stood there alone, not sure what to do as Lily hurried up to him.

"Oi! Levy's crying! What did you say to her!?"

"I…insulted every facet of her physical appearance," Gajeel admitted. Lily hovered there, mouth agape at what had just been said to him. "I was trying say that I liked her appearance, but it came out wrong!"

"How wrong can you be to go from 'you're pretty' to 'you're an ugly cow'!?" Lily yelled.

"I'm not good with women!" Gajeel shouted back. _Or the emotions attached to them._

"Clearly! Now, go after her for hell's sake!"

**===][===**

"This is booooooooooooring!" Natsu complained. He and Lucy were sitting outside the ruin, enjoying the sunshine. He was not used to missions that went on after the big fight with the enemy. That was the fun part! This was… "I'm never going on a mission with Levy again. I have no idea how Jet and Droy stand it. She does all the work and they just sit around?"

"I wish I could help more, but this is far above me," Lucy said sadly. "I should study more, so I can be of better benefit to the guild."

"What are you talking about? You're a brilliant guild member!" Natsu countered, making Lucy turn away to hide her blush. "I mean, after Levy and Fried, you're the best with all this…wordy stuff. And besides, you could fail every mission and you still wouldn't be the worst guild member."

"Nab?"

"Nab. I don't think he took a single mission in the seven years we were gone." They laughed together for a moment, before a more serious mood fell. "You've gotten really strong, haven't you?"

"I don't know. My nakama needed me, that's all," Lucy replied bashfully.

"That's all that strength is," Natsu said quietly. "It comes from the heart."

"You don't need brains!" Happy chirped. "Natsu proves that!"

"Other things come from the heart," Lucy said so softly that if it hadn't been for Natsu's slayer hearing, he'd never had picked it up. He blushed in a manner unusual for him. What the hell was Lucy saying? Was she saying what he thought that she was saying?

There was a rustle and Natsu surged to his feet as Garren emerged through the mountain foliage.

"What are you doing here?" Natsu roared, flames engulfing his body and interposing himself between Lucy and the god slayer. "Gajeel kicked your ass, and I won't go any easier on you!"

Garren smiled thinly and drew a notebook from somewhere on his person. He threw it lightly to land at Lucy's feet who stooped to pick it up. She began to flick through the pages and her eyes widened.

"It's not much," Garren said, "but it's all of the drakonic that I know from Metalicana. Please pass it on to Gajeel's girlfriend, it'll give her something to build upon."

"This is amazing," Lucy said with wonder.

"Why?" Natsu asked simply.

"I'm not Gajeel's enemy. I was just practicing tough love. I have no place in his life; I know that I'm an unfeeling bastard, but at least let me do this much for him." The god slayer turned and began to walk away.

"You could be involved if you want to be," Natsu called. "But there was no need for this set-up. Just come by the guild someday. I'd like a chance to fight you myself!"

"Maybe. I'll drop by someday when I'm ready for a rematch."

"Oi! You don't happen to know where Edolas Igneel is, do you?" Natsu asked as the idea came to him. Garren stopped and looked over his shoulder.

"I don't. But I have met him. Listen to me, Natsu Dragneel, stay a million miles away from him, he is not someone to cross."

"What!? He's stronger than you?"

"I didn't say that, but you've been to Edolas, right? Some people are the same. Some are similar. Some are diametric opposites. Your father, from what I've heard of him, is nothing like his Edolas counterpart. You don't want to meet him." Natsu was looking at him with such a queasy expression that Garren felt forced to go on. "He's nothing to you, Dragneel. He's not your dad. He's just a random stranger, don't go looking for him."

**===][===**

Goddamnit. Where had she gone? The ruin was so ancient that the odour of dust and dirt filled everywhere, making her scent hard to track and her scent was delicate, just like her. He stopped by a damaged section of corridor, noting little fingerprints on the wall. Clever girl had gone up, assuming that Gajeel would stay on the same level.

He clambered up to the next floor and strode slowly through rooms, searching each to be sure. At last, he found her curled up sobbing in the corner of a chamber, like some kind of puppy or something.

"Listen, Shorty. I was trying to say that I think you're…well, that I like the way that you…" Holy fuck. He could fight dragons and powerful mages! Why was this conversation so fucking hard?

Levy bawled loudly, her words choked by her tears. "Why can't you say something nice? Why is it so hard for you?"

"Listen you little runt, I'm trying to say something nice and-"

"I love you!" Levy shrieked. Gajeel stopped in a heartbeat. "There, I said it! I know that you just look at me as some underdeveloped midget, some little weakling girl who doesn't deserve-"

Levy's words stopped. Mainly because Gajeel's lips were pressing down on her mouth. Her eyes widened. What was he doing? Her heart was beating so fast in her ribcage that she thought that she must be about to explode. He retreated slightly, so he could speak, his voice hushed.

"I was trying to say that you were wrong earlier. You're no butterfly. Butterflies are only beautiful from a distance, but now that I'm close to you, you're even more beautiful."

"I…uh…I…that's," Levy responded in her usually brilliant idiom.

"I'm trying to say that I think you're beautiful."

"I don't understand. I'm not beautiful."

"You're the one who's good with words. What would you use?" He purred, grinning widely. It just felt so right to have said it, and it felt good to have her all red-faced and stammering. "Gorgeous? Sexy? Stunning? Short?"

The last jab worked perfectly, snapping Levy's brain back into working order as she puffed out her cheeks. "I'd use stupid. Idiotic. Emotionally dense. Too damn tall. Rugged. Thrilling. Kind, even if he hides it behind iron walls."

"You forgot handsome."

"Didn't you say that I'm the one who's good with words? I know what I meant to say!" Levy teased.

"What did I say?" Gajeel asked, dragging her into his arms, off of the ground and into a hug. "Cute and feisty, despite no claws. I said you were a kitty, Gihi!"

"Is this your idea of a pick-up line? It's pretty clumsy!"

"And that's why you love me, right?"

"You bet!" Levy replied, moving in to kiss Gajeel deeply. He may certainly be clumsy and bad with words, but that was fine. Levy had those things. He had his own indelible qualities. Bravery. Strength. And being drop dead sexy when his shirt came off!

**===][===**

"See?!" Levy squealed, bouncing around like the happiest person in the world. With Garren's notebook, Levy had made massive headway in deciphering the writing in the ruins. "It's like a…oh, what do you call it…a last will and testament!"

"What?" Natsu asked, obviously confused.

"This whole place. The dragons made it very recently. The only reason it appeared ancient is because the whole thing belongs to the earth dragon, who was capable of burying it. But dragons from all over the world came here, each to write a message for future generations!"

"What?" Gajeel asked, mirroring Natsu.

"See here?" She asked, pointing to a wall which was laden with text. "This here was written by Babadios, the Dragon of the Sea. It's a poem dedicated to the way life changes. Here Aurakana and Ashang, the Sun and Moon dragons have written an oath to protect their land forever."

"That's amazing," Lily noted, thinking on just how much text was in the ruin.

"Natsu, I haven't found anything by Igneel yet, but Tsukias the earth dragon left a message for his son." Levy pressed a notebook into Natsu's hands. "Can you please make sure that he gets it?"

"Of course," Natsu agreed.

Gajeel stepped forward. "Wait. When you said that you haven't found anything by Igneel, did you mean…?"

"Yes, Gajeel. Please come with me." Levy lead him through a few rooms, until they came upon a wall of text that Levy had marked earlier. She turned her back to Gajeel while holding his hand and began to read aloud. "To my dearest son. I know that you will face dark times in your life, and question why you were left alone. Know this; I love you and I have faith in you. In the dark times, carry yourself with the strength of iron, and when you cannot carry on, rely on your comrades for support. I know that I am not a good father and perhaps I could have done more, but when you have nothing left, remember that my heart is within you, forged from steel, unbendable and unbreakable. The great iron dragon, Metalicana."

Levy hadn't realised it, but as she was speaking, Gajeel had begun to cry. As she finished, she found herself drawn into his ironclad embrace and held onto him as he wept.

"Thank you so much. You are my strength. …don't tell anyone else that I'm crying."

"I wouldn't dream of it," Levy replied, happily snuggling into her man's hair.

**===][===**

It was about a week later that they left the ruin, giving them time to heal and translate. Levy made transcripts from almost a hundred different dragons, including something from Grandine. But she never found anything from Igneel. Large segments of the ruin had been destroyed. Who knew what was lost.

On one chunk of rubble, she'd identified the word 'summer' written with the inflection of great happiness. Natsu had taken one look at it, smiled and said 'I love you too, dad'. It had almost broken Lucy's heart to overhear.

As they walked back, Lucy fell into step next to him. "Are you alright?"

"Of course," Natsu replied as if confused by the question. "I wish I had more, but I don't need anything. Dad loves me that much I know without a doubt. A few words don't change anything."

Natsu looked over his shoulder where Gajeel was teasing Levy's height. It might be the most normal scene for the pair, but somehow it was all different.

"So…those two are a couple, right?" He asked Lucy. She nodded, smiling like the Cheshire cat.

"Isn't it great? They're perfect for each other!"

"Like Beauty and the Beast!" Happy sang as Lily tackled him into the dirt.

"Do you think that we-," Lucy started.

"Yeah, kind of," Natsu interrupted. "You know that we're always gonna be best friends?"

"Yeah, I do."

"Great. I'm not saying that we can't-"

"Yeah," Lucy replied, smiling.

"Right."

"Tch," Gajeel scoffed to Levy. "When are those two just going to admit that they like each other?"

**And with that statement of extreme hypocrisy, this tale comes to an end. I hope some of you enjoyed reading it and a great thank you to all of you who took the time to leave reviews. They keep me warm at night (since I don't have a Levy) and make me want to write more.**

**I plan to start writing a new story called 'The Thirteenth Key' soon. It will follow chronologically from this story and focus on the relationship of Lucy and Levy to start with. It will also feature Edolas Igneel and who knows; maybe the girls will need a certain pair of slayers to help them at some point? *coughNaLucough***

**Because Ophiuchus is awesome.**

**Thank you to all of you read this story!**


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